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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: safe · last · branch · season · jam · pitcher · track · band

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. last — final
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. band — a music group
  9. track — to keep track
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. last — finally
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. last — to go on
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. branch — a division
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. track — a path
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. band — a ring
  24. jam — in traffic

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