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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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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: track · season · mate · tear · band · current · nail · last

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. tear — from crying
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. mate — a friend
  7. band — a music group
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — to breed
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. current — of water
  16. track — a song
  17. tear — to rip
  18. track — to keep track
  19. tear — from crying
  20. season — of the year
  21. track — a path
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. last — finally
  24. season — in 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