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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: board · band · roll · plane · mate · straw · mug · kid

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. roll — a list
  3. board — to get on
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. mate — to breed
  7. plane — a tool
  8. mate — a partner
  9. kid — child
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. roll — a cake
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. mug — to rob
  15. band — a ring
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. band — a music group
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. mug — a face
  20. mate — a friend
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. kid — to tease
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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