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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. scale — size or range
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. fine — high quality
  7. wind — moving air
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. band — a ring
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. chest — of your body
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. band — a music group
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. chest — a box
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. fine — all right
  22. wind — moving air
  23. scale — in music
  24. straw — a straw man

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