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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. band — a ring
  3. cap — a lid
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. rest — what's left
  7. march — the month
  8. pop — to visit
  9. stock — shares
  10. rest — what's left
  11. march — music
  12. pop — music
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. march — the month
  16. rush — hurry
  17. stock — goods
  18. cap — of ice
  19. season — of the year
  20. rest — a break
  21. band — a music group
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. cap — a hat
  24. season — in sport

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