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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. ball — a great time
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. ball — a dance
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. lean — to bend
  11. capital — money
  12. season — in sport
  13. capital — a city
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. rock — a stone
  16. lean — thin
  17. band — a ring
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — a division
  20. cold — an illness
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. band — a music group
  23. cold — not warm
  24. rock — music

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