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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. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. wake — a trail
  6. court — of a king
  7. can — a tin
  8. court — of law
  9. cold — an illness
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. can — a tin
  12. cold — not warm
  13. stock — shares
  14. rush — hurry
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. band — a ring
  21. court — for sport
  22. stock — goods
  23. can — to be able to
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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