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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 116 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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. drill — army training
  3. cell — a phone
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. fork — in a road
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. scale — size or range
  8. firm — steady
  9. drill — a practice
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. drill — the tool
  12. firm — decided
  13. tube — the underground
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a ring
  17. firm — a company
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. ball — a dance
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. scale — in music
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. cell — in biology
  24. tube — a container

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