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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. bass — the fish
  3. band — a ring
  4. object — to protest
  5. tube — a container
  6. wound — an injury
  7. object — an aim
  8. last — final
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. band — a music group
  11. tube — the underground
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bass — low music
  16. last — finally
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. last — to go on

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