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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: key · sharp · spell · ball · leaves · band · mug · row

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. ball — a great time
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. band — a music group
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. spell — magic
  11. key — for a lock
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. key — the most important part
  14. mug — to rob
  15. row — a line
  16. spell — letters
  17. mug — a face
  18. key — in music
  19. sharp — clever
  20. ball — a dance
  21. mug — a cup
  22. spell — a short time
  23. row — to paddle
  24. leaves — lets stay

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