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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 120 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. firm — decided
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. object — to protest
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. wake — a trail
  8. shower — to wash
  9. game — wild animals
  10. object — an aim
  11. stock — shares
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. shower — rain
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. game — a match
  17. object — a thing
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. firm — steady
  20. firm — a company
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. stock — goods
  23. band — a music group
  24. stock — a soup base

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