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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 116 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: season · shower · wax · court · leaves · band

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. band — a ring
  3. season — in sport
  4. court — for sport
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. season — of the year
  9. band — a music group
  10. court — of law
  11. shower — rain
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. court — of a king
  14. wax — to grow
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. shower — to wash
  18. leaves — lets stay

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