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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. pop — soda
  3. rush — hurry
  4. wound — an injury
  5. file — a tool
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. bound — tied together
  9. bear — the animal
  10. band — a music group
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bound — obliged
  13. file — a document
  14. band — a ring
  15. vault — a safe
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bear — the animal
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. bound — certain
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pop — music
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. file — a line of people

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