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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. pit — a hole
  3. spring — the season
  4. spring — a coil
  5. branch — a division
  6. object — a thing
  7. band — a music group
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. spring — of water
  13. band — a ring
  14. file — a document
  15. snap — to click
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. object — an aim
  19. object — to protest
  20. pit — in a race
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. file — a line of people
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. file — a tool

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