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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. rule — government
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. band — a music group
  5. spell — magic
  6. root — the cause
  7. rule — a law
  8. swing — in golf
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. swing — to play on
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bound — obliged
  13. root — of a word
  14. spell — a short time
  15. spell — letters
  16. season — of the year
  17. bound — certain
  18. root — of a plant
  19. swing — music
  20. season — in sport
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. rule — to rule out

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