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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 120 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 · saw · snap · patient · bat · mate · bound · rash

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. band — a ring
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bound — obliged
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a friend
  8. band — a music group
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bat — the animal
  11. saw — the tool
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. bound — certain
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. snap — to click
  17. rash — hasty
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. rash — a series
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. mate — a partner

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