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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: degree · rest · band · wound · calf · pop · club · content

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. band — a ring
  3. club — for dancing
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. wound — an injury
  7. degree — an amount
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. rest — what's left
  10. degree — from a university
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. band — a music group
  13. pop — music
  14. pop — to visit
  15. wound — an injury
  16. degree — temperature
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. club — for golf
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. club — a group
  22. content — the amount
  23. rest — a break
  24. content — happy

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