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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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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: straw · chip · pitcher · nail · band · cap · roll · rule

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. chip — to eat
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. rule — a law
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. rule — government
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. chip — for betting
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — of ice
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. roll — a list
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. cap — a lid
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. roll — a cake
  24. straw — a straw man

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