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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 120 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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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 · last · fall · spell · rest · stick · board · squash

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. rest — what's left
  3. last — finally
  4. spell — magic
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. squash — the sport
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. rest — what's left
  11. last — to go on
  12. fall — to drop
  13. board — to get on
  14. rest — a break
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. fall — the season
  17. last — final
  18. band — a ring
  19. squash — to crush
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. band — a music group
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. board — a committee

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