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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. rash — a series
  4. chest — of your body
  5. charge — electricity
  6. chest — a box
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. charge — in control
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a ring
  15. kid — child
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. branch — a division
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. kid — to tease
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. charge — a price
  24. rash — on the skin

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