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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: hand · pass · band · bank · spell · nail · bark · stock

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. band — a ring
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bank — of a river
  9. spell — letters
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bank — for money
  12. hand — in cards
  13. pass — a permit
  14. stock — shares
  15. spell — magic
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bark — to shout
  18. stock — goods
  19. bank — for money
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. spell — a short time
  23. hand — help
  24. band — a music group

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