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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. key — for a lock
  3. spring — of water
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. branch — a division
  8. spring — the season
  9. key — in music
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a ring
  14. shower — rain
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. spring — a coil
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. key — the most important part
  21. last — final
  22. shower — to wash
  23. last — finally
  24. last — to go on

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