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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. prune — to trim
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. hand — in cards
  5. band — a ring
  6. bear — the animal
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. bank — for money
  9. bound — obliged
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. hand — help
  12. bear — the animal
  13. row — to paddle
  14. prune — to trim
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bank — of a river
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bound — certain
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. band — a music group
  23. row — a line
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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