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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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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: dip · band · roll · saw · swing · date · arm · pound

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. band — a music group
  5. roll — a list
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. roll — a cake
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. swing — to play on
  11. swing — in golf
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. date — the fruit
  17. pound — a weight
  18. band — a ring
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. saw — the tool
  21. dip — to sink
  22. swing — music
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. saw — the tool

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