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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. cap — a lid
  4. shower — rain
  5. race — a contest
  6. band — a ring
  7. net — for catching
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. pop — to visit
  10. band — a music group
  11. shower — to wash
  12. pop — music
  13. race — humankind
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. cap — of ice
  18. net — after costs
  19. cap — a hat
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. pop — soda
  23. race — the arms race
  24. net — in sport

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