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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: last · kid · patient · band · arm · board · bat · toast

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. band — a music group
  5. bat — the animal
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. last — finally
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. kid — to tease
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. band — a ring
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. board — a committee
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. last — to go on
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. kid — child
  24. last — final

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