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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. band — a music group
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. mine — for digging
  5. band — a ring
  6. rule — government
  7. spell — a short time
  8. spell — letters
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. season — of the year
  13. race — the arms race
  14. plane — a tool
  15. race — a contest
  16. rule — a law
  17. spell — magic
  18. content — happy
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. season — in sport
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. content — the amount
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. race — humankind

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