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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: straw · cap · lash · hide · ruler · mate · game · bass

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mate — a partner
  4. game — a match
  5. mate — a friend
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. mate — to breed
  8. cap — of ice
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. bass — low music
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bass — the fish
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. game — wild animals
  24. ruler — for measuring

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