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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a ring
  3. present — a gift
  4. spring — of water
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. field — farmland
  7. content — the amount
  8. present — the time now
  9. content — happy
  10. spell — a short time
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. field — a subject
  13. present — there
  14. cap — of ice
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — magic
  17. band — a music group
  18. field — for sport
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — a coil
  22. cap — a hat
  23. cap — a lid
  24. ruler — a monarch

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