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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. band — a music group
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bat — the animal
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. bark — to shout
  17. band — a ring
  18. can — a tin
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. patient — a sick person

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