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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — in cards
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. mark — a grade
  6. rest — what's left
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. band — a music group
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. rest — what's left
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. bound — tied together
  14. band — a ring
  15. mark — a trace
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. branch — a division
  18. rest — a break
  19. bound — certain
  20. kid — child
  21. bound — obliged
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. kid — to tease

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