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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: roll · ball · band · foot · nail · clip · spell · root

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. root — of a plant
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. clip — a video
  5. foot — a measure
  6. spell — letters
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. ball — a dance
  11. spell — a short time
  12. band — a music group
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. root — the cause
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. clip — for paper
  17. band — a ring
  18. clip — to cut
  19. roll — a cake
  20. ball — a great time
  21. roll — a list
  22. root — of a word
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — on a finger

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