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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: bulb · squash · wound · board · band · wake · bank · cell

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. band — a music group
  4. board — a committee
  5. cell — a phone
  6. board — to get on
  7. bank — of a river
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. band — a ring
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. bank — for money
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bulb — for light
  19. wound — an injury
  20. squash — the sport
  21. wake — a trail
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. bank — for money

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