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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. band — a music group
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — a group
  7. rash — a series
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. can — to be able to
  10. can — a tin
  11. band — a ring
  12. rash — hasty
  13. shower — to wash
  14. pop — soda
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — obliged
  18. shower — rain
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pop — music
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. bound — tied together
  23. club — for dancing
  24. pop — to visit

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