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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bank — for money
  3. field — for sport
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wind — moving air
  8. root — the cause
  9. field — farmland
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. hand — in cards
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. vault — a safe
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bank — for money
  17. hand — help
  18. field — a subject
  19. root — of a word
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. fine — high quality
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bank — of a river
  24. fine — all right

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