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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: squash · mine · deal · drill · wound · band · rash · row

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. band — a ring
  5. row — to paddle
  6. rash — a series
  7. drill — army training
  8. wound — an injury
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. drill — the tool
  13. deal — to handle
  14. row — a line
  15. wound — an injury
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — to crush
  18. rash — hasty
  19. squash — the sport
  20. drill — a practice
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. mine — for digging

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