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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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Word bank
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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. wound — an injury
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. present — the time now
  7. band — a music group
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — in sport
  10. field — farmland
  11. season — of the year
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. present — a gift
  15. band — a ring
  16. field — for sport
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. present — there
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. field — a subject
  22. branch — a division
  23. wound — an injury
  24. lash — to lash out

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