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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. field — farmland
  5. fork — in a road
  6. can — a tin
  7. band — a music group
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. mine — for digging
  11. ball — a great time
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. can — a tin
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. stock — shares
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. field — a subject
  19. can — to be able to
  20. stock — goods
  21. band — a ring
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. field — for sport
  24. ball — a dance

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