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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. last — final
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. present — a gift
  7. spring — the season
  8. stem — to come from
  9. spring — a coil
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. pit — a hole
  12. band — a ring
  13. pit — in a race
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. last — finally
  16. mug — a cup
  17. mug — a face
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. last — to go on
  20. present — the time now
  21. present — there
  22. can — a tin
  23. mug — to rob
  24. spring — of water

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