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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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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: spell · band · land · rash · fall · bank · content · row

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. bank — for money
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. fall — the season
  5. spell — magic
  6. land — ground
  7. land — to come down
  8. rash — a series
  9. land — a country
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. spell — a short time
  12. bank — of a river
  13. fall — to drop
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. content — happy
  16. row — a line
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a music group
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bank — for money
  21. spell — letters
  22. content — the amount
  23. rash — hasty
  24. fall — to drop

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