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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. field — farmland
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. field — a subject
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. band — a music group
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bound — certain
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. band — a ring
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. snap — to click
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. field — for sport
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bound — obliged
  24. lash — to lash out

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