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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 · plane · kid · lie · pass · straw · roll · spring

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. spring — the season
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. lie — to recline
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. roll — a cake
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. spring — a coil
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. spring — of water
  13. band — a ring
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. roll — a list
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a music group
  23. plane — a tool
  24. kid — child

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