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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. can — a tin
  3. suit — to fit
  4. rash — hasty
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. can — a tin
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. can — to be able to
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a ring
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. suit — clothes
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. suit — in cards
  19. cold — not warm
  20. snap — to click
  21. pound — a weight
  22. cold — an illness
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. rash — a series

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