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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. fall — to drop
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. club — for dancing
  6. club — a group
  7. squash — to crush
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. club — for golf
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. fall — the season
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. fall — to drop
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a music group
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. squash — the sport
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. calf — of the leg

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