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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. rest — a break
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a word
  6. bark — to shout
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. rest — what's left
  12. wind — moving air
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. root — of a plant
  16. band — a ring
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. band — a music group
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. rest — what's left
  21. wind — moving air
  22. prune — to trim
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. prune — to trim

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