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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: club · land · season · rock · coach · file · firm · band

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. firm — decided
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. land — to come down
  8. club — for dancing
  9. rock — a stone
  10. firm — steady
  11. rock — music
  12. firm — a company
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. club — a group
  16. band — a music group
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. file — a line of people
  19. land — ground
  20. file — a document
  21. land — a country
  22. band — a ring
  23. club — for golf
  24. file — a tool

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