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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: last · clip · straw · charge · tube · rest · row · ball

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. ball — a great time
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. last — to go on
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. rest — a break
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. row — to paddle
  9. tube — a container
  10. charge — electricity
  11. rest — what's left
  12. row — a line
  13. clip — a video
  14. last — final
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. rest — what's left
  17. clip — for paper
  18. ball — a dance
  19. tube — the underground
  20. charge — in control
  21. clip — to cut
  22. last — finally
  23. charge — a price
  24. ball — a round shape

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