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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 116 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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. content — the amount
  3. lean — to bend
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. spell — letters
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. bat — the animal
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. spell — a short time
  13. content — happy
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. lean — thin

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