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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 116 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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. current — of water
  3. bore — to drill
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. band — a music group
  6. bank — of a river
  7. file — a tool
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bat — the animal
  11. file — a document
  12. bank — for money
  13. bank — for money
  14. last — final
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bore — to tire
  18. degree — from a university
  19. last — finally
  20. file — a line of people
  21. band — a ring
  22. last — to go on
  23. current — electric
  24. current — happening now

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