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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. face — to point toward
  3. fine — high quality
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. face — part of the head
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wound — an injury
  8. band — a music group
  9. mate — a friend
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. wound — an injury
  12. mate — a partner
  13. drill — a practice
  14. firm — steady
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fine — all right
  19. face — to confront
  20. mate — to breed
  21. drill — the tool
  22. firm — a company
  23. drill — army training
  24. firm — decided

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