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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. cap — a hat
  4. band — a ring
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. spring — of water
  7. scale — in music
  8. band — a music group
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. kid — child
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bass — low music
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. cap — a lid
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — size or range
  17. bass — the fish
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. cap — of ice
  20. kid — to tease
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. pit — in a race
  24. spring — the season

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