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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. squash — to crush
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. craft — a skill
  8. mark — a grade
  9. snap — to click
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. band — a ring
  12. shower — rain
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. mark — a trace
  16. roll — a cake
  17. shower — to wash
  18. roll — a list
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. craft — boats
  21. squash — the sport
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. band — a rubber band

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