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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. net — after costs
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — of water
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. net — in sport
  13. rule — a law
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rule — government
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. bark — to shout
  19. net — for catching
  20. mate — a partner
  21. mate — a friend
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. mate — to breed

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