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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. season — of the year
  3. ground — the earth
  4. season — in sport
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. last — finally
  8. ground — crushed
  9. cold — not warm
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. perch — the fish
  12. ground — a position
  13. last — to go on
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. last — final
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. cold — an illness
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. band — a ring
  24. season — to add flavour

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