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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. snap — to click
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. object — a thing
  7. season — in sport
  8. march — music
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. deal — to handle
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. kid — child
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. kid — to tease
  18. spell — a short time
  19. march — the month
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. season — of the year
  23. object — to protest
  24. march — the month

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