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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. club — a group
  4. band — a music group
  5. spell — a short time
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. band — a ring
  8. bank — of a river
  9. club — for golf
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. land — to come down
  12. spell — letters
  13. cap — of ice
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. club — for dancing
  16. kid — to tease
  17. kid — child
  18. spell — magic
  19. bank — for money
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bank — for money
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. land — ground
  24. cap — a hat

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