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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. march — music
  5. squash — to crush
  6. net — in sport
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cold — not warm
  9. season — of the year
  10. band — a music group
  11. march — the month
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. net — for catching
  14. cold — an illness
  15. march — the month
  16. band — a ring
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. net — after costs
  19. squash — the sport
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. season — in sport
  24. hide — to keep secret

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