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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. lean — to bend
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. ball — a great time
  5. court — for sport
  6. ball — a dance
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. rash — a series
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. face — to point toward
  13. shower — to wash
  14. court — of law
  15. lean — thin
  16. shower — rain
  17. face — part of the head
  18. face — to confront
  19. rash — hasty
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. court — of a king
  23. band — a music group
  24. lean — to rest against

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