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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: band · bulb · rash · drill · craft · snap · cold · bass

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. drill — army training
  4. bulb — for light
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — low music
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. rash — a series
  12. band — a music group
  13. bass — the fish
  14. drill — a practice
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rash — hasty
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. snap — to click
  21. craft — boats
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. craft — a skill
  24. rash — on the skin

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