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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. rule — a law
  3. pit — in a race
  4. shower — rain
  5. pop — soda
  6. drill — the tool
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pop — music
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. shower — to wash
  11. band — a ring
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. pit — a hole
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bark — to shout
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. drill — a practice
  18. rule — government
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. pop — to visit
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. drill — army training
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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