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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pop — to visit
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. rule — a law
  8. toast — bread
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. rule — government
  11. bulb — for light
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — music
  18. march — music
  19. capital — money
  20. march — the month
  21. capital — a city
  22. band — a ring
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. march — the month

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