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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. field — for sport
  5. file — a tool
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. field — a subject
  8. rush — hurry
  9. field — farmland
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. file — a document
  12. band — a ring
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bulb — for light
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. band — a music group
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. bulb — for light
  23. mine — for digging
  24. band — a rubber band

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