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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a ring
  3. can — a tin
  4. court — of law
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. hand — in cards
  7. drill — the tool
  8. court — for sport
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. pit — a hole
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. court — of a king
  14. can — to be able to
  15. drill — army training
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. band — a music group
  18. pit — in a race
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. drill — a practice
  22. can — a tin
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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