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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: face · straw · patient · chip · bat · wound · band · stick

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. band — a ring
  5. wound — an injury
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. face — part of the head
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. chip — for betting
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. face — to confront
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. band — a music group
  16. face — to point toward
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. wound — an injury
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bat — the animal
  23. chip — to eat
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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