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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 116 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: mug · board · band · march · season · shower · race · tube

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. march — music
  3. march — the month
  4. band — a music group
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. race — a contest
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — to rob
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — humankind
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — to get on
  16. tube — the underground
  17. mug — a face
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. tube — a container
  20. march — the month
  21. band — a ring
  22. season — in sport
  23. shower — to wash
  24. season — of the year

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