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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. band — a ring
  3. rest — what's left
  4. club — a group
  5. rest — a break
  6. tear — from crying
  7. kid — to tease
  8. club — for dancing
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. tear — to rip
  14. cap — of ice
  15. firm — steady
  16. cap — a hat
  17. firm — decided
  18. rest — what's left
  19. club — for golf
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a music group
  23. firm — a company
  24. bark — to shout

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