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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. band — a ring
  3. cap — a lid
  4. season — in sport
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. cap — of ice
  8. mark — a trace
  9. file — a line of people
  10. band — a music group
  11. ground — crushed
  12. file — a document
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — final
  15. mark — a grade
  16. ground — the earth
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. cap — a hat
  20. file — a tool
  21. lean — thin
  22. ground — a position
  23. last — finally
  24. lean — to bend

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