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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 120 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: pound · kick · snap · wave · race · band · vault · straw

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. race — humankind
  4. band — a music group
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. vault — a safe
  7. pound — a weight
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. snap — to click
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. band — a ring
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. kick — in football
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. wave — of the sea

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