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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: present · game · band · branch · straw · rock · bowl · cap

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. band — a ring
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. cap — a lid
  7. present — a gift
  8. cap — of ice
  9. present — the time now
  10. band — a music group
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. game — wild animals
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. rock — music
  16. game — a match
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. present — there
  22. cap — a hat
  23. branch — a division
  24. rock — a stone

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