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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. content — the amount
  4. bass — the fish
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. band — a music group
  7. object — a thing
  8. object — an aim
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. bass — low music
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. race — humankind
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. race — a contest
  15. band — a ring
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. object — to protest
  19. lean — to bend
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. game — wild animals
  22. lean — thin
  23. content — happy
  24. race — the arms race

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