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

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. saw — the tool
  3. key — the most important part
  4. branch — a division
  5. track — a song
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. track — to keep track
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bound — obliged
  12. key — for a lock
  13. kid — to tease
  14. band — a ring
  15. foot — a measure
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. bound — tied together
  20. key — in music
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. bound — certain
  23. track — a path
  24. kid — child

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