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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 sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. pop — soda
  3. hand — help
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. band — a ring
  7. hand — in cards
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. ball — a dance
  11. pop — to visit
  12. root — the cause
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. spell — magic
  15. cap — a lid
  16. spell — a short time
  17. pop — music
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. ball — a great time
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. band — a music group
  22. spell — letters
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — of a plant

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