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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bear — the animal
  3. band — a ring
  4. mine — for digging
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. chip — for betting
  10. net — after costs
  11. chip — to eat
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — the cause
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. root — of a word
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. lie — to recline
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  24. band — a music group

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