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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 120 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: dip · saw · straw · cap · plane · band · mate · racket

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — of ice
  6. mate — a partner
  7. mate — to breed
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. dip — to sink
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. band — a music group
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. mate — a friend
  22. plane — a tool
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. cap — a lid

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