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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. club — for golf
  3. band — a ring
  4. club — for dancing
  5. file — a tool
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. file — a document
  8. object — an aim
  9. object — a thing
  10. club — a group
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. land — to come down
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — for digging
  17. land — a country
  18. land — ground
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. file — a line of people
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. object — to protest

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