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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. net — for catching
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. march — the month
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. band — a ring
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. band — a music group
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to tire
  11. net — after costs
  12. march — the month
  13. can — a tin
  14. chest — a box
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. chest — of your body
  17. march — music
  18. net — in sport
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bore — to drill
  21. can — to be able to
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. chest — of your body
  24. can — a tin

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