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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: scale · snap · rash · last · bat · band · object · squash

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. last — finally
  3. rash — hasty
  4. scale — size or range
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. object — to protest
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. last — to go on
  9. snap — to click
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. band — a music group
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. band — a ring
  18. bat — the animal
  19. scale — in music
  20. object — a thing
  21. rash — a series
  22. last — final
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. object — an aim

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