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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. 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. rest — a break
  2. band — a music group
  3. key — for a lock
  4. fall — the season
  5. key — in music
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. stem — to come from
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. key — the most important part
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. rest — what's left
  15. last — to go on
  16. fall — to drop
  17. last — finally
  18. band — a ring
  19. present — there
  20. fall — to drop
  21. rest — what's left
  22. present — the time now
  23. last — final
  24. 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