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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 120 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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  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. wound — an injury
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. wound — an injury
  6. field — farmland
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a ring
  9. cap — of ice
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. swing — to play on
  13. field — for sport
  14. field — a subject
  15. chair — a leader
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. cap — a lid
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — music
  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