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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. band — a music group
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cap — a hat
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. dip — to sink
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. club — for dancing
  11. pit — a hole
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. cap — of ice
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. can — to be able to
  16. band — a ring
  17. cold — an illness
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — a tin
  20. cap — a lid
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. club — a group
  23. cold — not warm
  24. pit — in a race

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