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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. bound — tied together
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. present — a gift
  9. bound — certain
  10. spell — magic
  11. bound — obliged
  12. present — the time now
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. present — there
  15. pass — a permit
  16. spell — letters
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. scale — size or range
  20. spell — a short time
  21. scale — in music
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. scale — for weighing

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