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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. wound — an injury
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. wound — an injury
  6. spell — magic
  7. rock — music
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. pass — a permit
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. row — to paddle
  15. snap — to click
  16. lean — thin
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — a stone
  19. spell — a short time
  20. lean — to bend
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. row — a line
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. pass — to spend time

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