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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: ground · bark · calf · band · hand · craft · deal · wake

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. band — a ring
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. craft — boats
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. ground — the earth
  8. wake — a trail
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. craft — a skill
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. ground — crushed
  16. deal — to handle
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bark — to shout
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. hand — help
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. band — a music group
  23. ground — a position
  24. craft — a handicraft

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