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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: band · hand · spell · lie · stem · race · deal · club

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. club — a group
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. stem — to come from
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. club — for golf
  9. race — a contest
  10. spell — letters
  11. band — a ring
  12. hand — help
  13. race — the arms race
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. deal — to handle
  16. lie — to recline
  17. hand — in cards
  18. band — a music group
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. club — for dancing
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — a short time

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