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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cap — a hat
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. last — to go on
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. prune — to trim
  13. tube — a container
  14. date — the fruit
  15. last — finally
  16. tube — the underground
  17. saw — the tool
  18. prune — to trim
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. last — final
  23. band — a music group
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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