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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. squash — the sport
  4. mine — for digging
  5. rest — a break
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bank — of a river
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. rest — what's left
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. bank — for money
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. mark — a trace
  14. spell — magic
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. saw — the tool
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bank — for money
  19. rest — what's left
  20. squash — to crush
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. mark — a grade
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bark — to shout

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