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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: band · mouse · march · rock · toast · ball · chair · straw

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. march — the month
  6. chair — a leader
  7. ball — a dance
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. march — music
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. rock — a stone
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. ball — a great time
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. band — a music group
  18. rock — music
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. band — a ring
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. toast — bread
  24. march — the month

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