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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 120 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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. can — a tin
  5. track — a song
  6. can — a tin
  7. pound — a weight
  8. track — to keep track
  9. rash — a series
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. track — a path
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — army training
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. can — to be able to
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. drill — a practice

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