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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: cabinet · band · mug · net · date · face · rash · drill

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. drill — the tool
  4. band — a music group
  5. net — after costs
  6. face — to point toward
  7. drill — a practice
  8. date — the fruit
  9. band — a ring
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. net — in sport
  12. mug — to rob
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. mug — a cup
  15. face — part of the head
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. drill — army training
  19. mug — a face
  20. face — to confront
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. rash — a series
  23. net — for catching
  24. rash — hasty

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