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

Word bank: straw · tear · band · ruler · pitch · file

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a ring
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. pitch — completely
  8. file — a document
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. file — a line of people
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying

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