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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. pitch — completely
  3. bound — tied together
  4. track — a path
  5. track — a song
  6. land — to come down
  7. land — a country
  8. band — a ring
  9. bound — certain
  10. swing — music
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — of law
  14. swing — in golf
  15. track — to keep track
  16. bound — obliged
  17. swing — to play on
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. court — for sport
  21. rest — what's left
  22. land — ground
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. band — a music group

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