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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: band · season · lie · mate · wind · bay · spell · last

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. mate — to breed
  3. last — final
  4. mate — a friend
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. band — a ring
  10. mate — a partner
  11. season — of the year
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. last — finally
  16. last — to go on
  17. spell — a short time
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. lie — to recline
  21. spell — letters
  22. wind — moving air
  23. spell — magic
  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