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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. pass — a permit
  4. march — the month
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. mug — a face
  8. mug — a cup
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bound — obliged
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bass — the fish
  14. band — a music group
  15. march — the month
  16. band — a ring
  17. bass — low music
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bound — tied together
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. bound — certain
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. march — music
  24. hand — help

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