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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 120 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. last — final
  3. game — a match
  4. deal — to handle
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. game — wild animals
  7. club — a group
  8. club — for golf
  9. last — to go on
  10. key — for a lock
  11. key — the most important part
  12. face — to confront
  13. key — in music
  14. club — for dancing
  15. last — finally
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. band — a music group
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. face — part of the head
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. face — to point toward

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