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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. spring — the season
  3. band — a music group
  4. rash — a series
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. date — the fruit
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. spring — a coil
  11. rash — hasty
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. spring — of water
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. tube — the underground
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. tube — a container

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