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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. rock — a stone
  4. cold — not warm
  5. rest — a break
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. cold — an illness
  8. scale — in music
  9. band — a ring
  10. band — a music group
  11. chair — a leader
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. rock — music
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. scale — size or range
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. date — the fruit
  20. rest — what's left
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. rest — what's left
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. date — on the calendar

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