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

Word bank: key · band · field · swing · lie · pass · rule · cap

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. pass — a permit
  4. band — a ring
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. cap — a hat
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — for sport
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — of ice
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. swing — to play on
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. key — for a lock
  17. band — a music group
  18. swing — in golf
  19. key — the most important part
  20. field — a subject
  21. key — in music
  22. rule — government
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. swing — music

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