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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: face · band · ball · plane · straw · bank · court · land

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. face — to confront
  3. bank — for money
  4. land — ground
  5. court — of a king
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. band — a ring
  8. face — part of the head
  9. bank — of a river
  10. band — a music group
  11. land — to come down
  12. ball — a dance
  13. land — a country
  14. ball — a great time
  15. plane — a tool
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. bank — for money
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of law
  20. face — to point toward
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. ball — a round shape

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