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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: snap · rush · straw · band · present · row · bear · jam

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. band — a music group
  6. row — to paddle
  7. bear — the animal
  8. present — a gift
  9. snap — to click
  10. band — a ring
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. rush — hurry
  14. row — a line
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. present — the time now
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. present — there
  22. bear — the animal
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. band — a rubber band

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