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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.

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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. band — a music group
  3. rest — a break
  4. rest — what's left
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. last — finally
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. court — for sport
  9. band — a ring
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. file — a tool
  12. board — to get on
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. last — to go on
  15. court — of a king
  16. last — final
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a line of people
  19. board — a committee
  20. court — of law
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. rest — what's left
  24. kid — to tease

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