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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 · wind · wave · current · toast · date · lash · staff

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. date — the fruit
  4. current — of water
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. current — happening now
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. staff — employees
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wind — moving air
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. toast — bread
  19. staff — a stick
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. wind — moving air
  22. current — electric
  23. staff — employees
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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