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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to click
  4. field — a subject
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. band — a music group
  8. club — for golf
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. field — for sport
  11. squash — the sport
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. club — for dancing
  14. club — a group
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — money
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. squash — to crush
  20. field — farmland
  21. mark — a grade
  22. lie — to recline
  23. capital — a city
  24. band — a ring

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