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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a ring
  4. rock — music
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. mine — for digging
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. suit — to fit
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. suit — clothes
  12. band — a music group
  13. court — of a king
  14. suit — in cards
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. court — of law
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. pound — a weight
  20. court — for sport
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. cold — an illness

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