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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. spell — letters
  5. last — final
  6. spell — a short time
  7. cell — a phone
  8. last — finally
  9. deal — to handle
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — a division
  12. vault — a safe
  13. pound — a weight
  14. last — to go on
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. wind — moving air
  19. cell — in biology
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. wind — moving air

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