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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. spring — of water
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. current — electric
  6. current — happening now
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. spring — a coil
  9. pop — to visit
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. current — of water
  12. pop — music
  13. hand — help
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. foot — a measure
  17. band — a ring
  18. rock — a stone
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. spring — the season
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rock — music
  24. pop — soda

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