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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. hand — help
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. band — a ring
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. band — a music group
  8. content — the amount
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. hand — in cards
  12. chest — of your body
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. chest — of your body
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. chest — a box
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. pound — a weight

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