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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bore · press · spell · wound · band · bark · club · bowl

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. spell — letters
  4. bore — to drill
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. spell — magic
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. band — a music group
  10. bore — to tire
  11. club — for dancing
  12. press — newspapers
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. club — a group
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. spell — a short time
  18. press — a publisher
  19. bark — to shout
  20. press — to push
  21. band — a ring
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. club — for golf

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