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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. spring — a coil
  3. ball — a dance
  4. ball — a great time
  5. field — for sport
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. pass — a permit
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. spring — of water
  10. band — a music group
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. spring — the season
  13. band — a ring
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. court — of a king
  16. field — a subject
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a lid
  19. plane — a tool
  20. cap — a hat
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. field — farmland
  23. court — for sport
  24. court — of law

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