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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  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. bat — in an idiom
  2. band — a music group
  3. pop — music
  4. club — for dancing
  5. ground — a position
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. season — of the year
  9. club — for golf
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bat — the animal
  12. cell — a phone
  13. ground — crushed
  14. club — a group
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. pop — soda
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. ground — the earth
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. pop — to visit
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. season — in sport
  23. band — a rubber band
  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