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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. object — an aim
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. lean — thin
  5. object — a thing
  6. drill — army training
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. last — final
  9. band — a music group
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. bass — the fish
  12. object — to protest
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. last — to go on
  15. last — finally
  16. stand — to bear
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bass — low music
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. lean — to bend
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. drill — the tool
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. stand — on your feet

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