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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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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: face · band · club · patient · rash · pop · tear · race

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. tear — from crying
  3. race — the arms race
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — hasty
  6. pop — soda
  7. club — for golf
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. race — humankind
  10. tear — from crying
  11. face — to confront
  12. pop — music
  13. club — a group
  14. tear — to rip
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. band — a music group
  17. pop — to visit
  18. race — a contest
  19. face — to point toward
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. club — for dancing
  23. face — part of the head
  24. band — a ring

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