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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. mug — a cup
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. date — the fruit
  6. mug — a face
  7. drill — army training
  8. rash — a series
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cap — a hat
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. clip — for paper
  13. drill — the tool
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. cap — a lid
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. clip — a video
  19. band — a ring
  20. mug — to rob
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. band — a music group
  23. drill — a practice
  24. rash — hasty

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