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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. content — happy
  3. cell — in biology
  4. root — the cause
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. season — of the year
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. band — a ring
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. band — a music group
  14. rush — hurry
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. season — in sport
  17. root — of a plant
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cell — a phone
  21. content — the amount
  22. root — of a word
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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