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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: staff · rush · pop · degree · mouse · season · jam · band

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. band — a music group
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. pop — music
  8. band — a ring
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. pop — soda
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. season — of the year
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. degree — from a university
  17. pop — to visit
  18. staff — a stick
  19. staff — employees
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — in sport
  22. degree — an amount
  23. staff — employees
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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