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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. ground — crushed
  3. spring — of water
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mate — to breed
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. present — a gift
  8. mate — a friend
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. rush — hurry
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — a position
  13. present — there
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. spring — the season
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. band — a music group
  18. present — the time now
  19. current — of water
  20. current — happening now
  21. deal — to handle
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. current — electric
  24. spring — a coil

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