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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: degree · band · rush · bank · fine · stand · season · cold

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. band — a ring
  3. rush — hurry
  4. fine — high quality
  5. season — of the year
  6. bank — for money
  7. degree — an amount
  8. season — in sport
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bank — for money
  11. band — a music group
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. stand — to bear
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. degree — temperature
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. degree — from a university
  20. cold — an illness
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. cold — not warm
  24. fine — all right

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