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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. field — farmland
  4. file — a tool
  5. band — a music group
  6. firm — decided
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. firm — steady
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bank — for money
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. field — for sport
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. field — a subject
  16. band — a ring
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bank — for money
  19. file — a line of people
  20. firm — a company
  21. file — a document
  22. mine — for digging
  23. ball — a dance
  24. ball — a great time

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