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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.

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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: ground · staff · cap · track · spell · face · kid · band

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. ground — the earth
  3. track — a song
  4. track — to keep track
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. ground — a position
  8. face — part of the head
  9. band — a music group
  10. spell — letters
  11. staff — a stick
  12. spell — a short time
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a hat
  15. staff — employees
  16. face — to confront
  17. ground — crushed
  18. face — to point toward
  19. spell — magic
  20. kid — to tease
  21. track — a path
  22. cap — a lid
  23. staff — employees
  24. kid — child

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