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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.

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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: rest · perch · hide · object · kid · band · hand · club

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. band — a music group
  3. rest — what's left
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. club — a group
  7. kid — to tease
  8. rest — what's left
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. object — an aim
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. hand — in cards
  16. object — to protest
  17. hand — help
  18. object — a thing
  19. club — for golf
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. club — for dancing
  22. rest — a break
  23. band — a ring
  24. perch — the fish

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