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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: bat · band · season · march · present · bore · land · rock

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. march — the month
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. march — the month
  6. land — to come down
  7. bore — to drill
  8. land — ground
  9. rock — music
  10. rock — a stone
  11. season — in sport
  12. present — the time now
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. band — a music group
  16. present — a gift
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. season — of the year
  19. present — there
  20. land — a country
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. march — music
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bat — the animal

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