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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 116 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 · spring · wind · mark · deal · chip · band · content

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. chip — for betting
  3. wind — moving air
  4. deal — to handle
  5. season — in sport
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mark — a grade
  10. season — of the year
  11. content — happy
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. band — a ring
  14. spring — of water
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. chip — to eat
  17. spring — the season
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. band — a music group
  20. mark — a trace
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. content — the amount
  24. spring — a coil

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