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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 120 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. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. net — in sport
  4. object — to protest
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. key — the most important part
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. net — for catching
  9. bank — of a river
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. bank — for money
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. game — wild animals
  14. object — an aim
  15. bank — for money
  16. snap — to click
  17. object — a thing
  18. key — in music
  19. spell — letters
  20. game — a match
  21. key — for a lock
  22. spell — a short time
  23. net — after costs
  24. pitcher — a jug

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