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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. hand — help
  3. firm — a company
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. pop — to visit
  8. pop — music
  9. board — a committee
  10. rush — hurry
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. rest — what's left
  13. hand — in cards
  14. rest — what's left
  15. field — a subject
  16. firm — decided
  17. pop — soda
  18. band — a ring
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. board — to get on
  21. rest — a break
  22. band — a music group
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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