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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 · fall · lie · wake · bat · chip · rush · bulb

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. band — a ring
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. band — a music group
  5. bat — the animal
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. chip — for betting
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. fall — the season
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. fall — to drop
  21. lie — to recline
  22. chip — to eat
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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