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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. fine — all right
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. band — a music group
  8. craft — boats
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. foot — a measure
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. hand — help
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. fine — high quality
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. wound — an injury
  20. craft — a skill
  21. wound — an injury
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. cell — in biology
  24. band — a ring

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