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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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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: lie · band · leaves · pop · lean · cell · roll · land

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. pop — soda
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. pop — music
  6. land — to come down
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lean — thin
  10. land — a country
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. roll — a cake
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. band — a ring
  15. lean — to bend
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. land — ground
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. pop — to visit
  22. cell — a phone
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. roll — a list

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