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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. band — a ring
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. mark — a grade
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — for dancing
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wind — moving air
  11. club — a group
  12. hand — in cards
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. tube — a container
  15. band — a music group
  16. hand — help
  17. mark — a trace
  18. snap — to click
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. wind — moving air
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. tube — in a tire

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