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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: spell · season · scale · bat · cap · band · ground · board

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  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. ground — crushed
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. scale — size or range
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. board — a committee
  6. cap — of ice
  7. spell — letters
  8. cap — a hat
  9. spell — a short time
  10. cap — a lid
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. scale — in music
  13. season — of the year
  14. board — to get on
  15. ground — a position
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. band — a ring
  18. spell — magic
  19. bat — the animal
  20. band — a music group
  21. season — in sport
  22. ground — the earth
  23. season — to add flavour
  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