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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. rash — hasty
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. mate — a friend
  5. band — a ring
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. band — a music group
  8. net — in sport
  9. mate — to breed
  10. rash — a series
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. roll — a list
  13. kid — to tease
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. kid — child
  16. current — of water
  17. season — in sport
  18. mate — a partner
  19. roll — a cake
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — for catching
  22. current — electric
  23. current — happening now
  24. rash — on the skin

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