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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. net — after costs
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. can — to be able to
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. can — a tin
  9. shower — rain
  10. net — for catching
  11. bear — the animal
  12. net — in sport
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bear — the animal
  15. chair — a leader
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. band — a ring
  19. scale — in music
  20. wake — a trail
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. shower — to wash
  23. band — a music group
  24. bear — to put up with

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