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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: nail · band · roll · spring · drill · lean · bear · bat

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. spring — the season
  6. roll — a cake
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. drill — the tool
  11. lean — to bend
  12. bat — the animal
  13. drill — army training
  14. roll — a list
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bear — the animal
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bear — the animal
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — a coil
  21. lean — thin
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. band — a music group
  24. lean — to rest against

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