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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. tube — the underground
  4. hand — help
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. last — final
  7. band — a ring
  8. last — finally
  9. drill — army training
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. last — to go on
  12. drill — the tool
  13. bass — the fish
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. drill — a practice
  19. tube — a container
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — low music
  22. band — a music group
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. fan — a supporter

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