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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: roll · band · court · spell · bass · mouse · last · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bass — the fish
  3. band — a ring
  4. roll — a list
  5. spell — letters
  6. last — finally
  7. last — final
  8. roll — a cake
  9. bass — low music
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. court — for sport
  13. band — a music group
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. spell — magic
  17. season — in sport
  18. spell — a short time
  19. season — of the year
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. last — to go on
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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