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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. cap — of ice
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. mate — a partner
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. cap — a hat
  12. fall — the season
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pitch — completely
  18. cap — a lid
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. mate — a friend
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. band — a ring
  23. mate — to breed
  24. band — a music group

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