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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: march · band · pass · ground · pop · chest · ball · bulb

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. pass — a permit
  3. march — the month
  4. ball — a dance
  5. bulb — for light
  6. pop — music
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. pop — soda
  10. band — a ring
  11. bulb — for light
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. ground — a position
  15. march — the month
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pop — to visit
  18. chest — a box
  19. ground — the earth
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. march — music
  22. ground — crushed
  23. ball — a great time
  24. chest — of your body

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