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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. object — an aim
  4. band — a ring
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. suit — to fit
  7. band — a music group
  8. object — to protest
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. suit — in cards
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. object — a thing
  13. clip — a video
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rest — what's left
  16. clip — to cut
  17. rest — what's left
  18. wind — moving air
  19. suit — clothes
  20. rest — a break
  21. wake — a trail
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — a jug

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