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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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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: safe · band · hand · bore · pitch · bat · straw · perch

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. hand — help
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitch — completely
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. bore — to tire
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a ring
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. bore — to drill
  24. bat — the animal

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