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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. charge — in control
  3. ball — a great time
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. ground — a position
  7. band — a music group
  8. cap — a lid
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. ball — a dance
  11. ground — the earth
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. ground — crushed
  15. cap — a hat
  16. mine — for digging
  17. tear — from crying
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. charge — a price
  21. charge — electricity
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. cap — of ice
  24. bear — the animal

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