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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. object — a thing
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. field — farmland
  9. band — a ring
  10. object — to protest
  11. field — a subject
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. band — a music group
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. field — for sport
  16. chair — a leader
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. squash — to crush
  19. object — an aim
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wax — to grow
  23. squash — the sport
  24. chair — to sit on

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