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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. cap — of ice
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. saw — the tool
  7. file — a tool
  8. cap — a hat
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. file — a line of people
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. craft — a skill
  14. cap — a lid
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. craft — boats
  18. file — a document
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. saw — the tool
  21. band — a ring
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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