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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. field — for sport
  3. can — to be able to
  4. suit — in cards
  5. suit — to fit
  6. net — for catching
  7. can — a tin
  8. suit — clothes
  9. net — in sport
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — the fruit
  12. net — after costs
  13. band — a ring
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a tool
  16. object — an aim
  17. file — a line of people
  18. object — a thing
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. can — a tin
  21. field — a subject
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. object — to protest
  24. field — farmland

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