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

Word bank: rash · bulb · club · band · pass · kid · straw · rest

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. band — a music group
  3. rash — a series
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. kid — child
  6. rash — hasty
  7. club — for golf
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. band — a ring
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bulb — for light
  15. kid — to tease
  16. club — a group
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. pass — a permit
  20. club — for dancing
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. bulb — for light
  24. straw — a straw man

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