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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · spell · cell · rush · net · season · pitch · leaves

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. march — the month
  6. cell — a phone
  7. march — music
  8. rush — hurry
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. season — in sport
  11. march — the month
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. net — in sport
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. spell — magic
  17. cell — in biology
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — for catching
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. pitch — completely
  22. spell — letters
  23. spell — a short time
  24. rush — a thrill

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