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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  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. band — a ring
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bound — tied together
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mate — to breed
  6. bound — obliged
  7. rash — a series
  8. ball — a great time
  9. band — a music group
  10. bound — certain
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. file — a document
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — hasty
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. file — a line of people
  19. ball — a dance
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. file — a tool
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  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