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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. snap — to click
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. band — a ring
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. rest — what's left
  10. stock — goods
  11. club — for dancing
  12. squash — to crush
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. band — a music group
  16. club — a group
  17. squash — the sport
  18. mark — a grade
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. mark — a trace
  21. stock — shares
  22. club — for golf
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — a break

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