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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: straw · band · patient · bay · wind · march · bulb · row

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. row — a line
  3. march — the month
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bulb — for light
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. wind — moving air
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. march — the month
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. wind — moving air
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. band — a ring
  19. march — music
  20. bulb — for light
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. band — a music group
  23. row — to paddle
  24. wind — to turn a key

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