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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: hide · sharp · fan · rash · game · band · straw · pop

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. pop — music
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. pop — soda
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. band — a ring
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. pop — to visit
  15. game — a match
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. sharp — clever
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. rash — a series
  22. band — a music group
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. game — wild animals

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