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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bear — the animal
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. kick — in football
  9. cell — a phone
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. band — a music group
  14. rush — hurry
  15. bear — the animal
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. chair — a leader
  18. rule — a law
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. cell — in biology
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. rule — government
  23. snap — to click
  24. band — a ring

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