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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. perch — the fish
  3. mug — to rob
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. mug — a face
  7. suit — to fit
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a music group
  10. suit — in cards
  11. cold — an illness
  12. pop — soda
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. track — to keep track
  16. cold — not warm
  17. track — a song
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pop — music
  22. pop — to visit
  23. track — a path
  24. mug — a cup

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