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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: band · arm · season · present · root · fine · wind · field

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. present — a gift
  6. band — a ring
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. fine — high quality
  9. field — for sport
  10. present — the time now
  11. root — of a word
  12. band — a music group
  13. season — in sport
  14. root — the cause
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. present — there
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. wind — moving air
  19. field — a subject
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. root — of a plant
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. field — farmland
  24. wind — moving air

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