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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 120 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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. craft — a skill
  3. board — to get on
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. craft — boats
  7. band — a ring
  8. mug — a face
  9. file — a tool
  10. bass — low music
  11. file — a document
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. hand — help
  15. board — a committee
  16. tear — to rip
  17. mug — a cup
  18. bass — the fish
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mug — to rob
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. hand — in cards
  23. file — a line of people
  24. band — a music group

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