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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 120 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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. band — a ring
  3. rush — hurry
  4. march — the month
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. band — a music group
  8. spring — the season
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. spring — a coil
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. march — music
  16. spring — of water
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. march — the month
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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