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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: spring · last · band · track · stand · cell · racket · march

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cell — in biology
  4. spring — a coil
  5. stand — to bear
  6. march — the month
  7. track — a song
  8. track — to keep track
  9. spring — the season
  10. band — a music group
  11. cell — a phone
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. march — the month
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. spring — of water
  16. last — final
  17. track — a path
  18. last — to go on
  19. march — music
  20. last — finally
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. band — a ring
  24. band — a rubber band

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