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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: bass · straw · hand · nail · tube · cold · mouse · bound

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bound — obliged
  5. cold — not warm
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. hand — help
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bass — low music
  14. tube — the underground
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. bound — certain
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — the fish
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. tube — a container
  24. hand — in cards

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