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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. scale — in music
  4. can — a tin
  5. band — a ring
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. ball — a dance
  8. march — the month
  9. band — a music group
  10. wake — a trail
  11. march — the month
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. scale — size or range
  15. ball — a great time
  16. chip — for betting
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. can — a tin
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. march — music
  22. can — to be able to
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. chip — to eat

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