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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: band · stem · hide · file · march · bulb · racket · spell

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a ring
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. spell — a short time
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. march — music
  10. stem — to come from
  11. file — a document
  12. spell — magic
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. file — a line of people
  15. spell — letters
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. file — a tool
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. march — the month
  23. march — the month
  24. bulb — for light

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