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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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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 · board · rest · prune · rash · band · spell · tear

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. spell — magic
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bank — for money
  5. tear — from crying
  6. board — to get on
  7. board — a committee
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. spell — letters
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bank — of a river
  14. rest — a break
  15. prune — to trim
  16. band — a music group
  17. bank — for money
  18. tear — from crying
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rash — a series
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. spell — a short time
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a ring

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