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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: lash · straw · shower · mug · band · craft · row · cap

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. band — a ring
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. mug — a cup
  5. shower — rain
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. mug — to rob
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. row — a line
  11. craft — boats
  12. shower — to wash
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. craft — a skill
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a hat
  17. band — a music group
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. row — to paddle
  22. cap — a lid
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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