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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. key — the most important part
  3. file — a line of people
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. kid — child
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. key — for a lock
  8. file — a document
  9. band — a music group
  10. drill — the tool
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. land — a country
  13. wake — a trail
  14. drill — a practice
  15. kid — to tease
  16. band — a ring
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. land — to come down
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. land — ground
  22. drill — army training
  23. file — a tool
  24. key — in music

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