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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. chest — of your body
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. season — in sport
  5. chest — a box
  6. fine — high quality
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. shower — rain
  11. season — of the year
  12. shower — to wash
  13. field — a subject
  14. fine — all right
  15. fork — in a road
  16. band — a ring
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. band — a music group
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — to push
  21. press — a publisher
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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