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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. band — a ring
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a music group
  5. file — a tool
  6. bound — tied together
  7. sharp — clever
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. file — a document
  11. cap — of ice
  12. file — a line of people
  13. wound — an injury
  14. last — to go on
  15. wound — an injury
  16. last — finally
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — obliged
  19. cap — a hat
  20. root — the cause
  21. root — of a word
  22. cap — a lid
  23. last — final
  24. sharp — with an edge

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