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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. fine — high quality
  3. scale — in music
  4. band — a music group
  5. mate — a partner
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. wound — an injury
  9. roll — a list
  10. wound — an injury
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. dip — to sink
  15. band — a ring
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. snap — to click
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. fine — all right
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. mate — a friend
  22. scale — size or range
  23. mate — to breed
  24. fine — a penalty

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