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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. hand — in cards
  3. band — a music group
  4. field — farmland
  5. ground — the earth
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. saw — the tool
  8. press — newspapers
  9. press — a publisher
  10. hand — help
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. saw — the tool
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bore — to tire
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — for sport
  19. ground — a position
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. press — to push
  22. ground — crushed
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. band — a ring

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