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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. rest — a break
  5. rest — what's left
  6. band — a ring
  7. rash — hasty
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. rest — what's left
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. saw — the tool
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. band — a music group
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. vault — a safe
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. rash — a series

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