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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: band · root · tear · mate · pitcher · scale · bowl · wave

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — the cause
  10. mate — to breed
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. scale — in music
  13. mate — a partner
  14. tear — from crying
  15. band — a music group
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. mate — a friend
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. root — of a word
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. wave — of the sea

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