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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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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: fall · ball · march · net · bear · can · game · band

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. bear — the animal
  3. ball — a dance
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. fall — to drop
  7. net — after costs
  8. march — the month
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. fall — to drop
  11. game — wild animals
  12. fall — the season
  13. band — a music group
  14. game — a match
  15. march — the month
  16. bear — the animal
  17. band — a ring
  18. march — music
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. can — to be able to
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — for catching

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