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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 116 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 partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. band — a ring
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. cell — a phone
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. bank — for money
  8. tear — to rip
  9. band — a music group
  10. present — the time now
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bank — for money
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pitch — completely
  15. bank — of a river
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. tear — from crying
  18. present — a gift

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