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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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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 · kick · foot · track · hand · tube · rule · rash

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. tube — a container
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. track — a song
  10. tube — the underground
  11. hand — help
  12. band — a ring
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. kick — in football
  16. rule — government
  17. band — a music group
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. rule — a law
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. track — a path
  22. rash — a series
  23. foot — a measure
  24. track — to keep track

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