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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rest · cell · swing · fine · land · pitcher · game · band

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. fine — all right
  3. band — a ring
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. game — a match
  7. rest — what's left
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. land — a country
  10. rest — what's left
  11. land — to come down
  12. band — a music group
  13. swing — in golf
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. land — ground
  17. game — wild animals
  18. swing — music
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rest — a break
  21. swing — to play on
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. cell — a phone
  24. fine — high quality

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