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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. content — the amount
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. band — a music group
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. board — to get on
  14. stem — to come from
  15. pit — in a race
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. pit — a hole
  18. wound — an injury
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. wound — an injury
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. content — happy
  24. board — a committee

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