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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 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. ball — a great time
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. wake — a trail
  8. can — a tin
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. ball — a dance
  11. band — a music group
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — to be able to
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. band — a ring

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