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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 120 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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. staff — employees
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. file — a tool
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. fall — to drop
  9. file — a document
  10. bore — to drill
  11. staff — employees
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. wax — to grow
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. file — a line of people
  17. band — a ring
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. pound — a weight
  20. band — a music group
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bore — to tire
  23. fall — the season
  24. staff — a stick

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