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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. band — a ring
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. spring — the season
  6. wake — a trail
  7. march — music
  8. pit — a hole
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. spring — of water
  11. mine — for digging
  12. march — the month
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. march — the month
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. dip — to sink
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. band — a music group
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. pit — in a race
  24. dip — a sauce

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