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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 116 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: straw · row · band · stick · cue · last · perch · leaves

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. band — a music group
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. last — to go on
  5. perch — the fish
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. last — final
  12. band — a ring
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. cue — a signal
  15. cue — a hint
  16. last — finally
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cue — for pool
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. row — to paddle
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. row — a quarrel

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