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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: file · wound · drill · spell · straw · pitch · band · wave

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. file — a line of people
  5. spell — a short time
  6. file — a tool
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. wound — an injury
  10. drill — army training
  11. band — a music group
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a ring
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. spell — magic
  16. wound — an injury
  17. drill — a practice
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. pitch — completely
  20. spell — letters
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. file — a document
  24. drill — the tool

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