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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. ball — a dance
  4. pitch — completely
  5. rush — hurry
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. swing — in golf
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. ball — a great time
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. swing — to play on
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. bulb — for light
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bulb — for light
  20. band — a music group
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. shower — rain
  23. swing — music
  24. shower — to wash

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