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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fine — all right
  4. band — a music group
  5. swing — in golf
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. degree — an amount
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. swing — music
  10. degree — from a university
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — help
  13. season — of the year
  14. season — in sport
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. hand — in cards
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. degree — temperature
  21. swing — to play on
  22. object — a thing
  23. object — to protest
  24. object — an aim

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