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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. mate — a friend
  3. club — for dancing
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. band — a ring
  8. rest — a break
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. rest — what's left
  15. spring — a coil
  16. mate — a partner
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. spring — of water
  19. club — a group
  20. mate — to breed
  21. pound — a weight
  22. spring — the season
  23. club — for golf
  24. temple — a place of worship

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