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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. face — to confront
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. season — of the year
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. root — of a plant
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. root — the cause
  11. can — a tin
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bat — the animal
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. face — to point toward
  18. band — a music group
  19. can — to be able to
  20. can — a tin
  21. face — part of the head
  22. root — of a word
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. season — in sport

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