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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: season · wake · bear · mug · lie · straw · ground · band

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bear — the animal
  6. ground — a position
  7. mug — a cup
  8. season — in sport
  9. mug — to rob
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. lie — to recline
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. band — a ring
  16. wake — a trail
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bear — the animal
  22. season — of the year
  23. band — a music group
  24. wake — before a funeral

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