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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: band · drill · object · spring · straw · craft · wave · swing

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. band — a music group
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. craft — boats
  6. object — to protest
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. band — a ring
  9. drill — the tool
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. object — an aim
  12. spring — a coil
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. spring — of water
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. swing — music
  18. spring — the season
  19. craft — a skill
  20. object — a thing
  21. swing — in golf
  22. drill — a practice
  23. swing — to play on
  24. craft — a handicraft

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