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

Word bank: roll · last · toast · leaves · season · band · dip · deal

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. band — a ring
  3. dip — to sink
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. last — to go on
  6. season — of the year
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. season — in sport
  9. last — final
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. roll — a list
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. roll — a cake
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. deal — to handle
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. band — a music group
  21. last — finally
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. toast — bread
  24. band — a rubber band

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