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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. band — a ring
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. row — to paddle
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — low music
  9. root — of a word
  10. drill — army training
  11. root — the cause
  12. root — of a plant
  13. drill — a practice
  14. swing — in golf
  15. row — a line
  16. band — a music group
  17. swing — to play on
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bass — the fish
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. swing — music

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