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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. There's no middle ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. ground — a position
  3. pop — soda
  4. pop — to visit
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. face — part of the head
  8. face — to confront
  9. pop — music
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. ground — the earth
  13. field — farmland
  14. land — a country
  15. field — a subject
  16. ground — crushed
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — ground
  19. pit — in a race
  20. field — for sport
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. face — to point toward
  24. band — a music group

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