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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. cap — a hat
  3. mate — a friend
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. mate — a partner
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. spring — of water
  9. scale — size or range
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. cap — a lid
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. spring — a coil
  14. band — a music group
  15. fine — high quality
  16. mate — to breed
  17. spring — the season
  18. cap — of ice
  19. sharp — clever
  20. scale — in music
  21. deal — to handle
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. fine — all right

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