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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. band — a music group
  3. rash — a series
  4. band — a ring
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. fall — the season
  7. spring — the season
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. pop — music
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. spring — of water
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pop — to visit
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. pop — soda
  22. chair — a leader
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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