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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. file — a document
  6. present — a gift
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. band — a ring
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mine — for digging
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. rush — hurry
  16. stock — shares
  17. band — a music group
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. stock — goods
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a tool
  22. present — there
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. present — the time now

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