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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: cabinet · season · field · race · ball · pound · band · staff

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. field — a subject
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. race — humankind
  6. pound — a weight
  7. staff — employees
  8. field — farmland
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. band — a ring
  11. band — a music group
  12. staff — a stick
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. race — a contest
  15. season — in sport
  16. ball — a dance
  17. ball — a great time
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. staff — employees
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. season — of the year
  24. field — for sport

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