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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: band · rest · jam · club · drill · sharp · rash · chest

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. club — a group
  4. sharp — clever
  5. band — a ring
  6. rash — hasty
  7. chest — a box
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. rash — a series
  10. drill — the tool
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chest — of your body
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. chest — of your body
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. rest — a break
  17. club — for dancing
  18. club — for golf
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rest — what's left
  22. band — a music group
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. drill — army training

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