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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. staff — a stick
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. spring — the season
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bank — for money
  8. mark — a trace
  9. spring — of water
  10. bank — of a river
  11. staff — employees
  12. band — a music group
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wound — an injury
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. track — a path
  17. spring — a coil
  18. track — to keep track
  19. bank — for money
  20. track — a song
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. staff — employees
  24. mark — a grade

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