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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. spell — a short time
  4. rest — what's left
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. rest — a break
  7. wound — an injury
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. fork — in a road
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rash — hasty
  14. spell — letters
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. rash — a series

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