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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: band · saw · roll · wound · drill · mine · patient · spell

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wound — an injury
  4. spell — letters
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. band — a ring
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. roll — a list
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. wound — an injury
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. drill — army training
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. roll — a cake
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. drill — the tool
  18. mine — for digging
  19. spell — a short time
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. saw — the tool
  22. spell — magic
  23. band — a music group
  24. drill — a practice

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