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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. rock — music
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a ring
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — to drill
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. dip — to sink
  11. hand — help
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. wound — an injury
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. rule — a law
  18. rock — a stone
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. rule — government
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. wound — an injury
  24. band — a music group

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