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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rest — a break
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. rest — what's left
  8. face — to confront
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — the season
  12. face — to point toward
  13. face — part of the head
  14. band — a ring
  15. pitch — completely
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fall — to drop

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