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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 116 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. land — a country
  6. wound — an injury
  7. land — ground
  8. wound — an injury
  9. band — a ring
  10. band — a music group
  11. swing — to play on
  12. land — to come down
  13. swing — in golf
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. spring — the season
  16. spring — of water
  17. swing — music
  18. spring — a coil
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bank — for money
  22. rush — hurry
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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