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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: straw · bowl · stock · face · spell · band · chair · hand

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. face — to point toward
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. band — a ring
  6. spell — letters
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. face — to confront
  13. chair — a leader
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. face — part of the head
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. band — a music group
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stock — shares
  20. spell — magic
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. stock — goods
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. chair — a professorship

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