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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bat — the animal
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. last — to go on
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. ground — the earth
  9. band — a music group
  10. ground — a position
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. last — final
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. ground — crushed
  19. foot — a measure
  20. last — finally
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. toast — bread
  23. band — a ring
  24. foot — the bottom

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