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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 120 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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. rest — what's left
  3. band — a music group
  4. rest — what's left
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. scale — in music
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. scale — size or range
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. branch — a division
  15. saw — the tool
  16. cue — a hint
  17. saw — the tool
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cue — a signal
  20. cue — for pool
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. chest — a box
  24. rest — a break

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