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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
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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 · chest · rest · bark · jam · rash · rock · ball

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. ball — a dance
  4. rest — what's left
  5. bark — to shout
  6. band — a ring
  7. rock — music
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. chest — a box
  10. chest — of your body
  11. rash — hasty
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. rash — a series
  14. rock — a stone
  15. rest — a break
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. band — a music group
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. rest — what's left
  23. chest — of your body
  24. ball — a great time

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