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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 · object · drill · game · deal · roll · land · rest

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. deal — to handle
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — the tool
  5. land — ground
  6. drill — a practice
  7. game — a match
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. game — wild animals
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. land — to come down
  12. object — to protest
  13. object — an aim
  14. rest — a break
  15. roll — a list
  16. band — a music group
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. rest — what's left
  20. object — a thing
  21. rest — what's left
  22. roll — a cake
  23. band — a ring
  24. land — a country

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