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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. band — a ring
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bass — low music
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. firm — decided
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a music group
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. rest — what's left
  12. plane — a tool
  13. firm — steady
  14. bass — the fish
  15. rest — what's left
  16. content — happy
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. content — the amount
  19. shower — rain
  20. kid — to tease
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. firm — a company
  23. rest — a break
  24. shower — to wash

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