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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 120 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. band — a ring
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. dip — to sink
  7. cold — an illness
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. rest — what's left
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. rest — a break
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. band — a music group
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. rest — what's left
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. stem — to come from
  23. cold — not warm
  24. dip — to dunk

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