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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 124 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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. rush — hurry
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. row — a line
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. band — a music group
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. band — a ring
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. season — in sport
  21. roll — a list
  22. roll — a cake
  23. row — to paddle
  24. staff — employees

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