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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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. toast — bread
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. court — for sport
  5. cap — a hat
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. cap — of ice
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. court — of law
  10. file — a tool
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. suit — to fit
  13. cap — a lid
  14. date — the fruit
  15. file — a line of people
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. deal — to handle
  18. court — of a king
  19. band — a music group
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. band — a ring
  22. suit — in cards
  23. file — a document
  24. suit — clothes

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