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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: club · suit · cold · dip · cabinet · spring · object · band

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. cold — not warm
  3. band — a ring
  4. spring — the season
  5. object — a thing
  6. club — for dancing
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. club — for golf
  10. spring — a coil
  11. dip — to sink
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. spring — of water
  15. suit — in cards
  16. suit — clothes
  17. suit — to fit
  18. object — an aim
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. club — a group
  21. band — a music group
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. cabinet — ministers

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