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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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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: band · calf · court · straw · wind · mug · bark · kid

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  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. calf — of the leg
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. kid — child
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. mug — to rob
  9. court — of law
  10. bark — to shout
  11. kid — to tease
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. band — a music group
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mug — a face
  20. wind — moving air
  21. band — a ring
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. mug — a cup
  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