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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. band — a music group
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rash — hasty
  5. rest — what's left
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. hand — in cards
  9. swing — in golf
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — the arms race
  14. swing — music
  15. rest — a break
  16. swing — to play on
  17. hand — help
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. race — humankind

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