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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 116 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. season — of the year
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. tear — from crying
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. spell — letters
  8. club — for golf
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. season — in sport
  11. staff — a stick
  12. staff — employees
  13. club — for dancing
  14. shower — rain
  15. staff — employees
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — of law
  18. club — a group
  19. shower — to wash
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. spell — a short time
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. court — for sport

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