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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 120 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: rush · wake · cap · ground · march · band · leaves · deal

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. cap — of ice
  3. march — the month
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. band — a ring
  6. wake — a trail
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. cap — a hat
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. march — the month
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — the earth
  14. cap — a lid
  15. deal — to handle
  16. ground — a position
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. march — music
  22. rush — hurry
  23. band — a music group
  24. deal — a big deal

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