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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: spell · chest · rest · swing · band · leaves · mouse · ground

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. rest — a break
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. rest — what's left
  5. ground — crushed
  6. band — a music group
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. ground — a position
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. swing — to play on
  11. band — a ring
  12. spell — magic
  13. chest — of your body
  14. swing — in golf
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rest — what's left
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. spell — a short time
  20. ground — the earth
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. spell — letters

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