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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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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. rash — hasty
  4. court — for sport
  5. drill — a practice
  6. season — of the year
  7. court — of a king
  8. swing — to play on
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. drill — the tool
  11. court — of law
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. band — a music group
  15. rash — a series
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. swing — in golf
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. band — a ring
  22. season — in sport
  23. swing — music
  24. safe — out of danger

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