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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 120 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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. wound — an injury
  3. band — a music group
  4. ball — a dance
  5. band — a ring
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rule — a law
  8. mug — a face
  9. drill — the tool
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. season — of the year
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. season — in sport
  16. ball — a great time
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. mug — a cup
  19. row — a line
  20. wound — an injury
  21. rule — government
  22. drill — army training
  23. drill — a practice
  24. mug — to rob

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