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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — in cards
  4. rule — a law
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. track — a song
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. rule — government
  13. band — a music group
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. track — to keep track
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. hand — help
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. prune — to trim
  23. track — a path
  24. nail — for a hammer

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