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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. band — a ring
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. march — music
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to confront
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. rock — music
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. march — the month
  14. chest — of your body
  15. march — the month
  16. dip — to sink
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. chest — a box
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. face — to point toward
  22. rock — a stone
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pitcher — a jug

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