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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. squash — the sport
  3. net — after costs
  4. band — a music group
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. net — in sport
  7. suit — in cards
  8. cap — of ice
  9. face — to point toward
  10. squash — to crush
  11. cap — a hat
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. last — finally
  14. face — part of the head
  15. cap — a lid
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. suit — clothes
  18. last — final
  19. net — for catching
  20. face — to confront
  21. last — to go on
  22. suit — to fit
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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