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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. squash — to crush
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. band — a ring
  7. rash — hasty
  8. hand — in cards
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. band — a music group
  12. rash — a series
  13. content — the amount
  14. squash — the sport
  15. hand — help
  16. content — happy
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. degree — temperature
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. degree — an amount
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. degree — from a university

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