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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 was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — letters
  4. spring — of water
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. cell — a phone
  9. spring — the season
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. hand — help
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. spring — a coil
  15. hand — in cards
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. spell — a short time
  19. file — a document
  20. board — to get on
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. board — a committee

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