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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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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: fork · field · club · snap · dip · band · leaves · straw

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. band — a music group
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. club — for dancing
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. band — a ring
  10. field — farmland
  11. field — a subject
  12. snap — to click
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. club — a group
  15. club — for golf
  16. fork — in a road
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. field — for sport
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. dip — to sink

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