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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · jam · face · mine · pitch · last · chest · rash

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pitch — completely
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. last — final
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. last — to go on
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. band — a ring
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. face — to point toward
  15. rash — hasty
  16. chest — a box
  17. mine — for digging
  18. band — a music group
  19. chest — of your body
  20. face — to confront
  21. rash — a series
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. face — part of the head
  24. last — finally

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