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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 · bound · cue · tube · field · tear · jam · rock

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. cue — a hint
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. bound — obliged
  6. tear — from crying
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. rock — music
  11. tube — the underground
  12. field — a subject
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. rock — a stone
  16. cue — a signal
  17. field — for sport
  18. bound — tied together
  19. tear — to rip
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bound — certain
  22. tube — a container
  23. field — farmland
  24. cue — for pool

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