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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. band — a music group
  4. board — to get on
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mine — for digging
  12. band — a ring
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. kid — to tease
  15. board — a committee
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — hasty
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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