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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: arm · land · root · wound · saw · wake · dip · band

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. root — the cause
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. land — to come down
  8. root — of a plant
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. dip — to sink
  11. root — of a word
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. saw — the tool
  17. band — a ring
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. land — a country
  21. saw — the tool
  22. land — ground
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — an injury

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