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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 120 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: band · face · present · cold · lie · bore · bear · straw

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. cold — an illness
  4. face — to point toward
  5. band — a music group
  6. present — there
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. present — the time now
  11. bore — to drill
  12. lie — to recline
  13. present — a gift
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bear — the animal
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. cold — not warm
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. face — to confront
  24. band — a ring

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