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

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. band — a ring
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. content — happy
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. content — the amount
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. roll — a list
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. band — a music group
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. roll — a cake
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. content — videos and posts

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