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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: season · rock · pitcher · wax · cabinet · saw · ground · band

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. ground — crushed
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. saw — the tool
  5. ground — a position
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. band — a ring
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. rock — music
  11. wax — to grow
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. season — in sport
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. rock — a stone
  17. ground — the earth
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. band — a music group
  22. season — of the year
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. saw — the 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