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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. band — a ring
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bark — to shout
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pitch — completely
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — crushed
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. ground — a position
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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