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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. band — a ring
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. bulb — for light
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. swing — in golf
  7. row — a line
  8. hand — help
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. net — after costs
  11. band — a music group
  12. dip — to sink
  13. row — to paddle
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. swing — music
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. net — in sport
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. net — for catching
  20. deal — to handle
  21. hand — in cards
  22. swing — to play on
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. bulb — for light

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