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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. hand — in cards
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. tear — to rip
  7. key — the most important part
  8. swing — music
  9. deal — to handle
  10. band — a ring
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. swing — to play on
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. key — for a lock
  17. key — in music
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. band — a music group
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. tear — from crying
  22. hand — help
  23. pitch — completely
  24. swing — in golf

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