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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. squash — to crush
  5. kid — child
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. season — in sport
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. band — a music group
  10. branch — a division
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — of the year
  13. kid — to tease
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. bear — the animal
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bear — the animal

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