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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 124 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. field — for sport
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. band — a music group
  5. rock — music
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. bat — the animal
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. field — a subject
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. field — farmland
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — a tin
  20. rock — a stone
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. can — to be able to

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