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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mouse · squash · straw · bat · band · chair

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. bat — the animal
  10. chair — a leader
  11. band — a ring
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. squash — to crush
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. squash — the sport
  18. mouse — the animal

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