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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. land — a country
  3. bank — for money
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. object — an aim
  6. cold — not warm
  7. band — a ring
  8. squash — the sport
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. object — to protest
  13. bank — of a river
  14. bank — for money
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. object — a thing
  17. squash — to crush
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. cold — an illness
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. land — ground
  23. band — a music group
  24. land — to come down

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