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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. chest — of your body
  4. squash — the sport
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — in sport
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. net — after costs
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. rock — music
  16. band — a music group
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. snap — to click
  19. squash — to crush
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. plane — a tool
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rock — a stone
  24. chest — a box

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