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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. rest — what's left
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. branch — a division
  5. rest — a break
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. band — a music group
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — humankind
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cap — a hat
  22. race — the arms race
  23. cap — a lid
  24. band — a ring

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