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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. wind — moving air
  3. season — of the year
  4. ground — the earth
  5. band — a music group
  6. season — in sport
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. band — a ring
  11. ground — crushed
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. deal — to handle
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — in biology
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. cell — a phone
  18. ground — a position

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