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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: bank · band · spell · content · pitcher · ball · staff · bark

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. content — happy
  4. spell — letters
  5. ball — a great time
  6. bank — for money
  7. band — a music group
  8. content — the amount
  9. bark — to shout
  10. band — a ring
  11. staff — employees
  12. bank — of a river
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. staff — employees
  17. spell — magic
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. ball — a dance
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. staff — a stick
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. spell — a short time

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