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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. drill — the tool
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. row — a line
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. club — for dancing
  8. roll — a list
  9. roll — a cake
  10. hand — help
  11. club — a group
  12. drill — a practice
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. club — for golf
  17. band — a music group
  18. drill — army training
  19. band — a ring
  20. row — to paddle
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. pitch — completely
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. row — a quarrel

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