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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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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: wind · rule · mouse · cell · pass · spell · band · perch

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. wind — moving air
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rule — a law
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pass — a permit
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. rule — government
  10. spell — a short time
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cell — a phone
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. perch — the fish
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — letters
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. cell — in biology
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. band — a ring

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