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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. rock — a stone
  3. rush — hurry
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. band — a ring
  6. rock — music
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. kid — to tease
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pop — to visit
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. kid — child
  21. band — a music group
  22. pop — music
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. pop — soda

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