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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: swing · cabinet · band · ball · degree · wound · mouse · tube

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. degree — an amount
  5. swing — in golf
  6. ball — a dance
  7. band — a music group
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. wound — an injury
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. degree — from a university
  13. swing — to play on
  14. wound — an injury
  15. tube — the underground
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. degree — temperature
  18. band — a ring
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. swing — music
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. tube — a container
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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