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

Word bank: spell · stock · temple · band · ground · rash

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. spell — letters
  3. ground — the earth
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — shares
  6. spell — a short time
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. rash — a series
  9. spell — magic
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. ground — a position
  12. rash — hasty
  13. ground — crushed
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. band — a ring
  18. temple — a place of worship

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