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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. march — the month
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. band — a ring
  7. wind — moving air
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. march — music
  11. rock — music
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. rock — a stone
  14. march — the month
  15. spring — of water
  16. firm — steady
  17. spring — a coil
  18. firm — decided
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. spring — the season
  21. band — a music group
  22. firm — a company
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. hand — help

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