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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: drill · wound · pitcher · band · suit · toast · season · root

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. wound — an injury
  5. root — the cause
  6. drill — the tool
  7. root — of a word
  8. suit — to fit
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. season — in sport
  15. drill — a practice
  16. suit — in cards
  17. band — a ring
  18. drill — army training
  19. toast — bread
  20. root — of a plant
  21. suit — clothes
  22. band — a music group
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wound — an injury

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