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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 120 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: race · ball · hand · spell · band · tube · bark · fork

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. tube — the underground
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. spell — a short time
  7. race — a contest
  8. fork — in a road
  9. band — a ring
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. hand — in cards
  13. race — the arms race
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. hand — help
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — letters
  18. ball — a dance
  19. race — humankind
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. band — a music group
  22. tube — a container
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. ball — a great time

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