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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: fine · season · kid · game · band · bound · net · lash

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. net — for catching
  4. season — in sport
  5. bound — obliged
  6. band — a ring
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bound — certain
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. season — of the year
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. fine — all right
  16. fine — high quality
  17. bound — tied together
  18. net — after costs
  19. band — a music group
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. game — wild animals
  23. net — in sport
  24. game — a match

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