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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: net · band · suit · deal · date · drill · craft · cold

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. net — after costs
  3. cold — not warm
  4. band — a music group
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. drill — army training
  7. date — the fruit
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. suit — clothes
  11. craft — boats
  12. net — for catching
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. net — in sport
  16. drill — a practice
  17. suit — in cards
  18. cold — an illness
  19. craft — a skill
  20. deal — to handle
  21. suit — to fit
  22. drill — the tool
  23. band — a ring
  24. cold — the Cold War

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