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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. band — a music group
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. band — a ring
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — humankind
  8. drill — the tool
  9. squash — the sport
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — a phone
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cap — a hat
  16. spell — magic
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. bear — the animal
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. squash — to crush
  21. drill — a practice
  22. spell — a short time
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. spell — letters

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