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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. suit — clothes
  3. suit — to fit
  4. file — a tool
  5. prune — to trim
  6. file — a document
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. key — for a lock
  9. bound — obliged
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. key — the most important part
  13. prune — to trim
  14. file — a line of people
  15. band — a music group
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. key — in music
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. suit — in cards
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rush — hurry
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bound — certain
  24. bound — tied together

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