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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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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: wake · date · toast · bank · spell · kid · band · chest

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. date — the fruit
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. spell — magic
  5. kid — child
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bank — for money
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. kid — to tease
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wake — a trail
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. band — a ring
  15. band — a music group
  16. bank — of a river
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. bank — for money
  19. toast — bread
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. chest — a box
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. chest — of your body

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