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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. band — a music group
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. club — for dancing
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. club — a group
  11. club — for golf
  12. rash — a series
  13. tube — the underground
  14. hand — in cards
  15. bark — to shout
  16. pitch — completely
  17. band — a ring
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. tube — a container
  23. rash — hasty
  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