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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. present — a gift
  5. band — a music group
  6. present — there
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. band — a ring
  9. clip — for paper
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. clip — to cut
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. present — the time now
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. clip — a video
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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