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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 124 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: straw · squash · mine · cell · stick · wave · bear · present

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bear — the animal
  5. squash — the sport
  6. cell — in biology
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. present — a gift
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cell — a phone
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. present — the time now
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. mine — for digging
  20. squash — to crush
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. present — there
  24. squash — the vegetable

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