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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. date — the fruit
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. march — the month
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. band — a ring
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tube — a container
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. game — a match
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. band — a music group
  24. lash — an eyelash

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