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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. lean — thin
  4. hand — in cards
  5. tube — a container
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. lean — to bend
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. club — for dancing
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. club — a group
  19. tube — the underground
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. club — for golf
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. lean — to rest against

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