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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. season — in sport
  3. pop — to visit
  4. land — to come down
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. swing — to play on
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. pop — music
  9. band — a music group
  10. staff — employees
  11. root — the cause
  12. swing — in golf
  13. season — of the year
  14. staff — a stick
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. land — a country
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — of a plant
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. staff — employees
  22. swing — music
  23. land — ground
  24. pop — soda

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