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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. band — a music group
  3. fall — the season
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mate — to breed
  7. drill — a practice
  8. mate — a partner
  9. ground — the earth
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. drill — the tool
  12. fall — to drop
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. band — a ring
  15. ground — crushed
  16. date — the fruit
  17. drill — army training
  18. ground — a position

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