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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. shower — rain
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. bulb — for light
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. court — of a king
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. mark — a grade
  10. hand — help
  11. cap — a hat
  12. bulb — for light
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. band — a music group
  15. court — of law
  16. fork — in a road
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. court — for sport
  19. shower — to wash
  20. hand — in cards
  21. mark — a trace
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. band — a ring
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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