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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. band — a music group
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. fall — to drop
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. fall — the season
  7. deal — to handle
  8. band — a ring
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. file — a line of people
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. fall — to drop
  15. rock — a stone
  16. file — a document
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. rest — a break
  19. rock — music
  20. rest — what's left
  21. chair — a leader
  22. rest — what's left
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. file — a tool

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