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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. file — a line of people
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. rush — hurry
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. file — a tool
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. file — a document
  9. deal — to handle
  10. spring — the season
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. board — a committee
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. spring — a coil
  15. band — a music group
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. spring — of water
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. board — to get on
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. season — in sport
  23. band — a ring
  24. pitch — completely

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