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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. swing — to play on
  3. present — the time now
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. rock — music
  6. present — a gift
  7. swing — in golf
  8. swing — music
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. band — a music group
  13. present — there
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. drill — the tool
  16. drill — army training
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. branch — a division
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. band — a ring
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. drill — a practice

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