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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. game — wild animals
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. tube — a container
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. band — a ring
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. tube — the underground
  10. bass — low music
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bass — the fish
  13. mug — a cup
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. game — a match
  17. band — a music group
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mug — to rob
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. hand — in cards
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. mug — a face
  24. bass — the instrument

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