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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. ground — the earth
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. ground — crushed
  6. band — a ring
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. band — a music group
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. branch — a division
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. track — to keep track
  16. rest — what's left
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. rest — a break
  20. track — a path
  21. track — a song
  22. rest — what's left
  23. ground — a position
  24. temple — a place of worship

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