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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. file — a tool
  3. chip — to eat
  4. track — a path
  5. ground — a position
  6. track — a song
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. track — to keep track
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. ground — the earth
  16. band — a music group
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a line of people
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. ground — crushed
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. band — a ring

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