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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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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: spring · squash · band · trunk · pit · march · tear · staff

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. pit — a hole
  3. squash — to crush
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. tear — to rip
  7. staff — employees
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. staff — employees
  10. tear — from crying
  11. band — a ring
  12. march — the month
  13. squash — the sport
  14. march — the month
  15. spring — a coil
  16. spring — the season
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. spring — of water
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. tear — from crying
  21. band — a music group
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. march — music
  24. staff — a stick

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