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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  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 music group
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. content — the amount
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. lean — thin
  8. cap — a hat
  9. present — there
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. cap — a lid
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wake — a trail
  18. lean — to bend
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. present — the time now
  21. present — a gift
  22. content — happy
  23. dip — to sink
  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