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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a path
  4. prune — to trim
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. bass — low music
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. bass — the fish
  10. roll — a cake
  11. track — a song
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. court — for sport
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. prune — to trim
  20. roll — a list
  21. band — a music group
  22. wake — a trail
  23. band — a ring
  24. lash — an eyelash

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