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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. chip — to eat
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. spell — magic
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. hand — help
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pound — a weight
  12. spell — a short time
  13. bear — the animal
  14. hand — in cards
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. chip — for betting

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