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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. mine — for digging
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. march — the month
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. band — a ring
  11. key — for a lock
  12. bark — to shout
  13. ball — a dance
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. march — the month
  18. key — in music
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. march — music
  23. key — the most important part
  24. band — a rubber band

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