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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cap · drill · ground · fan · pop · date · band · perch

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. ground — crushed
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. cap — a hat
  6. band — a ring
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a music group
  10. drill — army training
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — of ice
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. perch — the fish
  16. ground — the earth
  17. pop — to visit
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. drill — a practice
  20. date — the fruit
  21. pop — soda
  22. drill — the tool
  23. ground — a position
  24. perch — for a bird

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