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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 116 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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. suit — in cards
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. suit — clothes
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — clever
  8. suit — to fit
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — size or range
  12. hand — help
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. tear — from crying
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. scale — in music
  17. tear — to rip
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. band — a music group
  22. tear — from crying
  23. kick — in football
  24. hand — in cards

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