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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. band — a music group
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. chair — a leader
  8. squash — the sport
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. squash — to crush
  12. land — to come down
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. land — a country
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. lean — thin
  20. perch — the fish
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. lean — to bend
  23. land — ground
  24. temple — a place of worship

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