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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 · bulb · march · rock · hand · straw · sharp · cell

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. band — a ring
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. cell — in biology
  8. march — the month
  9. bulb — for light
  10. hand — help
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cell — a phone
  13. march — the month
  14. rock — music
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. march — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. hand — in cards
  19. band — a music group
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. bulb — for light

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