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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 124 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. cap — of ice
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. object — an aim
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. kick — in football
  11. content — happy
  12. object — to protest
  13. swing — in golf
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. band — a music group
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. rush — hurry
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cap — a hat
  20. swing — music
  21. object — a thing
  22. swing — to play on
  23. content — the amount
  24. patient — a sick person

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