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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: wind · present · object · bowl · file · band · pitcher · straw

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. band — a music group
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. file — a tool
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. object — a thing
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. object — an aim
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. band — a ring
  19. object — to protest
  20. present — the time now
  21. present — there
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. file — a document

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