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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. cap — a hat
  3. band — a music group
  4. march — music
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. rash — hasty
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. cap — of ice
  11. board — a committee
  12. board — to get on
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. march — the month
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. band — a ring
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. march — the month
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. rash — a series
  24. cap — a lid

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