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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: saw · straw · kid · lash · bowl · deal · perch · tear

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. saw — the tool
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — from crying
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. kid — to tease
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. perch — the fish
  16. deal — to handle
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. tear — to rip
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. kid — child

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com