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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 120 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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. spring — the season
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. pop — soda
  5. pop — music
  6. shower — to wash
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a song
  9. ground — crushed
  10. track — a path
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. spring — of water
  14. ground — a position
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. pop — to visit
  21. ground — the earth
  22. band — a music group
  23. shower — rain
  24. pitch — completely

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