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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. wound — an injury
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. drill — the tool
  8. band — a ring
  9. drill — army training
  10. deal — to handle
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. cap — of ice
  13. lie — to recline
  14. field — for sport
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. cap — a hat
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. drill — a practice
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. cap — a lid
  22. wound — an injury
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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