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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. pop — soda
  4. band — a music group
  5. spell — a short time
  6. drill — army training
  7. band — a ring
  8. stand — to bear
  9. pop — music
  10. drill — the tool
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. rest — a break
  13. cell — a phone
  14. drill — a practice
  15. ball — a great time
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. spell — magic
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. spell — letters
  21. cell — in biology
  22. rest — what's left
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. pop — to visit

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