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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 120 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: wave · band · net · cabinet · snap · spring · bowl · root

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. net — for catching
  5. root — of a word
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. snap — to click
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — the season
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. net — in sport
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — the cause
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. spring — a coil
  20. net — after costs
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. band — a music group
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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