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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 · wave · cabinet · pitcher · spell · march · season · snap

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. spell — letters
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. band — a ring
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. season — in sport
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. band — a music group
  15. season — of the year
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. snap — to click
  18. march — the month
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. spell — a short time
  21. march — the month
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. march — music
  24. spell — magic

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