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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. rule — government
  3. band — a ring
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. chest — a box
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. mine — for digging
  14. chest — of your body
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rule — a law
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. wind — moving air
  21. rash — a series
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. chest — of your body
  24. rash — on the skin

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