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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. last — to go on
  3. mate — a partner
  4. drill — a practice
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a music group
  7. last — finally
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. drill — army training
  11. last — final
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a city
  16. mate — a friend
  17. band — a ring
  18. mate — to breed
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. drill — the tool

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