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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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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: bass · march · cabinet · ground · straw · present · stick · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. march — music
  3. wind — moving air
  4. present — a gift
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — the earth
  11. bass — low music
  12. present — the time now
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. ground — crushed
  16. march — the month
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. march — the month
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. present — there
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bass — the fish
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. straw — dry grass

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