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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. object — a thing
  3. wake — a trail
  4. sharp — clever
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. band — a music group
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. object — an aim
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — to shout
  24. object — to protest

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