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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 116 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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — the season
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. current — happening now
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. band — a music group
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. firm — decided
  13. firm — a company
  14. current — of water
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. firm — steady
  17. cold — not warm
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. current — electric
  20. cold — an illness
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. season — in sport
  23. spring — a coil
  24. snap — to click

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