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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 116 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: deal · ground · bound · bark · drill · band · net · stem

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. drill — the tool
  4. stem — to come from
  5. net — after costs
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. drill — a practice
  8. band — a ring
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — in sport
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bound — certain
  13. deal — to handle
  14. bound — tied together
  15. ground — the earth
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bound — obliged
  20. band — a music group
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. ground — a position
  24. drill — army training

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