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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. bore — to tire
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a document
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pitch — completely
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. ground — crushed
  11. band — a ring
  12. file — a tool
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. ground — the earth
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bore — to drill
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. ground — a position
  24. chair — a leader

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