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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 116 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. band — a ring
  3. band — a music group
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. staff — a stick
  6. swing — to play on
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. staff — employees
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — in golf
  14. field — for sport
  15. staff — employees
  16. mug — a cup
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. field — farmland
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. field — a subject
  24. mug — to rob

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