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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 · pound · last · prune · ground · spell · stock · ball

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a dance
  3. prune — to trim
  4. spell — magic
  5. band — a ring
  6. ground — the earth
  7. spell — letters
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. prune — to trim
  10. stock — goods
  11. last — final
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. band — a music group
  14. spell — a short time
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. ball — a great time
  17. ground — a position
  18. stock — shares
  19. pound — a weight
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. last — finally
  22. last — to go on
  23. ground — crushed
  24. prune — the fruit

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