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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.

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: object · wave · lie · cold · spring · dip · band · mark

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. mark — a trace
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. band — a ring
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. spring — the season
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. lie — to recline
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — an illness
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. object — to protest
  17. band — a music group
  18. spring — a coil
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. dip — to sink
  21. object — an aim
  22. spring — of water
  23. object — a thing
  24. cold — not warm

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