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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. net — for catching
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. root — of a word
  6. net — in sport
  7. pass — a permit
  8. root — of a plant
  9. track — a song
  10. season — of the year
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. net — after costs
  14. track — a path
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a ring
  17. track — to keep track
  18. drill — army training
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. drill — the tool
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. season — in sport
  23. drill — a practice
  24. root — the cause

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