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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 124 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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. spell — letters
  4. craft — boats
  5. band — a ring
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. shower — rain
  8. spell — magic
  9. band — a music group
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. bound — certain
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. bound — tied together
  16. tube — a container
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. craft — a skill
  19. tube — the underground
  20. pitch — completely
  21. bound — obliged
  22. spell — a short time
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. shower — to wash

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