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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a lid
  5. club — a group
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — to wash
  8. tear — from crying
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. cap — a hat
  13. club — for golf
  14. can — to be able to
  15. tear — from crying
  16. club — for dancing
  17. staff — employees
  18. band — a ring
  19. can — a tin
  20. band — a music group
  21. tear — to rip
  22. can — a tin
  23. fall — to drop
  24. staff — employees

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