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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
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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: game · pit · lean · rule · bear · wound · pitcher · band

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. lean — thin
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. lean — to bend
  7. game — a match
  8. bear — the animal
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pit — in a race
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. bear — the animal
  14. pit — a hole
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. band — a ring
  18. rule — government
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. wound — an injury
  21. rule — a law
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a kind of play

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