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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. roll — a cake
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. court — of a king
  5. last — finally
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. suit — clothes
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. suit — to fit
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. game — a match
  16. spell — a short time
  17. court — of law
  18. roll — a list
  19. spell — magic
  20. court — for sport
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. game — wild animals
  24. spell — letters

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