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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. race — humankind
  4. spell — letters
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. swing — music
  8. band — a music group
  9. race — the arms race
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — to play on
  12. pass — a permit
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. race — a contest
  15. bulb — for light
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. sharp — clever
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. spell — a short time
  24. spell — magic

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