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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a lid
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. field — for sport
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. field — farmland
  10. pit — in a race
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. plane — a tool
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. cap — a hat
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. band — a music group
  18. pit — a hole
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. field — a subject
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. band — a ring

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