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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  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. band — a ring
  2. present — there
  3. band — a music group
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. squash — to crush
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. rock — music
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. squash — the sport
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. present — a gift
  20. mine — for digging
  21. rock — a stone
  22. present — the time now
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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