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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: season · wound · saw · bat · band · spell · bay · hide

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bat — the animal
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. spell — a short time
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. saw — the tool
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. spell — magic
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. season — of the year
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. saw — the tool
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. spell — letters
  22. season — in sport
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bay — a horse colour

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