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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. fall — to drop
  3. band — a music group
  4. row — a line
  5. band — a ring
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. squash — the sport
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — to crush
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. rash — hasty
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — the season
  14. row — to paddle
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. rash — a series

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