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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. kid — to tease
  3. cold — an illness
  4. band — a ring
  5. cold — not warm
  6. rest — a break
  7. kid — child
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. band — a music group
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. chair — a leader
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bass — the fish
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bass — low music
  19. present — a gift
  20. present — there
  21. prune — to trim
  22. present — the time now
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. rest — what's left

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