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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: can · chip · tear · straw · band · scale · wind · staff

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. staff — employees
  4. scale — size or range
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. staff — employees
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. band — a music group
  10. can — a tin
  11. can — to be able to
  12. tear — from crying
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. scale — in music
  15. wind — moving air
  16. can — a tin
  17. chip — to eat
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. wind — moving air
  20. tear — from crying
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. tear — to rip
  23. band — a ring
  24. chip — for betting

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