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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 · rock · game · squash · court · dip · prune · band

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. prune — to trim
  3. court — of law
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. spell — magic
  6. game — wild animals
  7. prune — to trim
  8. spell — a short time
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. court — of a king
  11. band — a ring
  12. dip — to sink
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. rock — music
  16. spell — letters
  17. game — a match
  18. squash — the sport
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. court — for sport
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. rock — a stone
  24. band — a music group

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