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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. stand — to bear
  6. drill — a practice
  7. staff — employees
  8. lie — to recline
  9. fall — the season
  10. band — a music group
  11. cell — a phone
  12. fall — to drop
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. fall — to drop
  16. game — wild animals
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. band — a ring
  19. drill — army training
  20. cell — in biology
  21. game — a match
  22. drill — the tool
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — an untruth

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