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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. band — a music group
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. season — in sport
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. season — of the year
  10. pound — a weight
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. court — of a king
  15. wake — a trail
  16. court — of law
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. wind — moving air
  19. band — a ring
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. court — for sport
  24. band — a rubber band

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