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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. band — a music group
  3. current — of water
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. mug — to rob
  8. band — a ring
  9. current — happening now
  10. current — electric
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. toast — bread
  14. mug — a face
  15. clip — for paper
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — to cut
  19. mug — a cup
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. season — in sport
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. season — of the year

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