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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cue — a signal
  3. spell — magic
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bat — the animal
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. track — a song
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. track — to keep track
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a music group
  17. wake — a trail
  18. cue — a hint
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. cue — for pool
  21. track — a path
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. spell — a short time
  24. wake — before a funeral

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