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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: hide · wound · deal · mark · cell · march · band · bass

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. march — music
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — a trace
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. march — the month
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bass — low music
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — the fish
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a ring
  23. deal — to handle
  24. march — the month

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