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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. band — a music group
  3. band — a ring
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. spring — a coil
  6. staff — employees
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. clip — a video
  9. squash — to crush
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. spring — of water
  14. squash — the sport
  15. staff — employees
  16. clip — to cut
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. spring — the season
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. clip — for paper
  24. temple — a place of worship

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