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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. scale — size or range
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. band — a music group
  7. rash — hasty
  8. cue — a signal
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. band — a ring
  11. mine — for digging
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. cue — a hint
  14. scale — in music
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cap — a lid
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cap — of ice
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. rash — a series
  24. band — a rubber band

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