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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. tear — to rip
  3. band — a ring
  4. hand — help
  5. content — the amount
  6. bear — the animal
  7. race — the arms race
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bear — the animal
  12. race — a contest
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. tear — from crying
  22. content — happy
  23. sharp — clever
  24. race — humankind

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