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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. ground — crushed
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. band — a music group
  5. season — of the year
  6. band — a ring
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. pop — soda
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. ground — the earth
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. pop — music
  16. branch — a division
  17. season — in sport
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. ground — a position
  23. pop — to visit
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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