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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. band — a ring
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. rash — hasty
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. band — a music group
  12. rash — a series
  13. capital — money
  14. rest — what's left
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — the fruit
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. capital — a city
  20. rest — a break
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. season — in sport
  23. rest — what's left
  24. lash — an eyelash

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