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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. bass — the fish
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. staff — a stick
  11. band — a music group
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. bass — low music
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. root — the cause
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. staff — employees
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. root — of a word
  23. staff — employees
  24. mine — for digging

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