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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. rock — music
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. bulb — for light
  5. content — happy
  6. pop — soda
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. press — to push
  9. band — a music group
  10. bore — to tire
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. pop — to visit
  13. rock — a stone
  14. press — a publisher
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. rash — a series
  18. press — newspapers
  19. content — the amount
  20. rash — hasty
  21. pop — music
  22. bulb — for light
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. bore — to drill

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