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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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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: deal · roll · last · bank · kid · spell · ground · racket

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bank — of a river
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — a cake
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. spell — a short time
  8. spell — magic
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. deal — to handle
  13. ground — crushed
  14. last — to go on
  15. ground — a position
  16. bank — for money
  17. kid — to tease
  18. kid — child
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. bank — for money
  21. last — final
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. last — finally
  24. ground — the earth

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