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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. current — happening now
  4. march — the month
  5. band — a music group
  6. march — the month
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. cue — a signal
  9. current — of water
  10. current — electric
  11. swing — to play on
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cue — for pool
  15. kid — child
  16. march — music
  17. wound — an injury
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. band — a ring
  20. swing — in golf
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. swing — music
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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