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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: kid · ball · band · spell · land · row · present · bank

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. spell — magic
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. ball — a dance
  5. present — a gift
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. spell — a short time
  10. present — there
  11. kid — child
  12. spell — letters
  13. present — the time now
  14. row — to paddle
  15. band — a ring
  16. ball — a great time
  17. land — to come down
  18. row — a line
  19. bank — for money
  20. land — ground
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — to tease
  23. land — a country
  24. band — a music group

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