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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. staff — employees
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. pass — a permit
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rash — a series
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. staff — a stick
  16. staff — employees
  17. band — a music group
  18. cold — an illness
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. branch — a division
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. rash — hasty

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