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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. spring — a coil
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. fine — all right
  6. spring — of water
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. dip — to sink
  9. rock — music
  10. saw — the tool
  11. spring — the season
  12. rock — a stone
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wake — a trail
  16. band — a ring
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. fine — high quality
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. band — a rubber band

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