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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. land — to come down
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. band — a ring
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. land — a country
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rash — a series
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bulb — for light
  19. wake — a trail
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. band — a music group
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. land — ground
  24. wake — before a funeral

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