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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 116 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rest · band · hand · craft · present · bear

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bear — the animal
  3. craft — boats
  4. present — there
  5. hand — help
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. rest — what's left
  8. hand — in cards
  9. rest — what's left
  10. present — a gift
  11. bear — the animal
  12. present — the time now
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. band — a music group
  16. craft — a skill
  17. rest — a break
  18. craft — a handicraft

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