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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
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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: content · band · rest · trunk · bass · ground · straw · bulb

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. band — a ring
  5. bulb — for light
  6. ground — crushed
  7. bass — low music
  8. content — happy
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. bass — the fish
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. ground — a position
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bulb — for light
  21. content — the amount
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. ground — the earth
  24. band — a music group

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