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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: saw · stand · net · staff · mine · hide · content · band

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. content — happy
  3. content — the amount
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — the tool
  8. net — after costs
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. staff — employees
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. net — for catching
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. staff — employees
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. stand — to bear
  18. band — a music group
  19. staff — a stick
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. mine — for digging
  23. net — in sport
  24. stand — on your feet

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