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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. band — a ring
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. tube — the underground
  5. chip — to eat
  6. mate — to breed
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. mate — a friend
  10. march — music
  11. spring — a coil
  12. march — the month
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. band — a music group
  15. chip — for betting
  16. spring — the season
  17. mate — a partner
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. march — the month
  23. tube — a container
  24. chip — in a computer

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