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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. mark — a trace
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — child
  8. shower — to wash
  9. rash — a series
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. pass — a permit
  15. mark — a grade
  16. shower — rain
  17. band — a music group
  18. toast — bread
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. kid — to tease
  21. rash — hasty
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. rash — on the skin

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