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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: band · kid · craft · mate · scale · net · land · rash

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. scale — size or range
  3. net — in sport
  4. land — to come down
  5. band — a music group
  6. land — a country
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. land — ground
  9. net — for catching
  10. mate — a partner
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. craft — a skill
  14. rash — hasty
  15. net — after costs
  16. mate — a friend
  17. rash — a series
  18. scale — in music
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. kid — to tease
  22. craft — boats
  23. band — a ring
  24. kid — child

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