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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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Word bank
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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. rest — what's left
  3. kid — to tease
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. cell — a phone
  7. charge — a price
  8. spring — the season
  9. band — a ring
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. charge — in control
  12. kid — child
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. cell — in biology
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. rest — what's left
  17. spring — a coil
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. band — a music group
  20. rest — a break
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. charge — electricity
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. hide — animal skin

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