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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. field — for sport
  4. pit — a hole
  5. staff — employees
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a music group
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. bear — the animal
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. staff — a stick
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. spell — a short time
  15. staff — employees
  16. field — farmland
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. field — a subject
  19. pit — in a race
  20. bear — the animal
  21. spell — magic
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. spell — letters

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