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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. rock — music
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. spell — letters
  6. saw — the tool
  7. mate — a partner
  8. rock — a stone
  9. content — happy
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. mate — a friend
  13. band — a music group
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. content — the amount
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. hand — help
  19. spell — a short time
  20. hand — in cards
  21. mate — to breed
  22. saw — the tool
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. band — a ring

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