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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. spell — a short time
  3. foot — a measure
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — the season
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. board — a committee
  9. band — a music group
  10. roll — a cake
  11. roll — a list
  12. spell — magic
  13. bark — to shout
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. spring — of water
  16. spell — letters
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. lean — to bend
  22. board — to get on
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. lean — thin

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