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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 120 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: march · club · rush · rash · lean · bass · band · spring

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. lean — thin
  4. march — the month
  5. band — a music group
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bass — the fish
  9. march — the month
  10. lean — to bend
  11. rush — hurry
  12. club — a group
  13. band — a ring
  14. rash — a series
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. club — for golf
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rash — hasty
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — a coil
  22. march — music
  23. bass — low music
  24. spring — of water

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