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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: tear · court · band · mug · current · kick · stick · straw

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. tear — from crying
  3. kick — in football
  4. current — electric
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. mug — a cup
  7. tear — from crying
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. mug — a face
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. court — for sport
  12. band — a music group
  13. mug — to rob
  14. current — of water
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. current — happening now
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. band — a ring
  19. court — of law
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. tear — to rip
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. court — of a king

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