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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 120 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: can · snap · straw · patient · band · bass · pitcher · bound

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. can — a tin
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to click
  10. bass — low music
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. band — a ring
  13. band — a music group
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bound — tied together
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. can — a tin
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bound — certain
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. bass — the fish

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