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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. mate — a partner
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. march — the month
  7. roll — a list
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. band — a music group
  10. face — to confront
  11. craft — a skill
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. roll — a cake
  14. march — music
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. content — happy
  18. march — the month
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — part of the head
  21. mate — a friend
  22. mate — to breed
  23. craft — boats
  24. content — the amount

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