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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. clip — to cut
  3. band — a ring
  4. craft — a skill
  5. wake — a trail
  6. clip — for paper
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. craft — boats
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. mug — a cup
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. band — a music group
  16. game — a match
  17. clip — a video
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. mug — a face
  24. game — wild animals

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