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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. spell — magic
  3. pop — to visit
  4. cold — not warm
  5. spell — letters
  6. prune — to trim
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. current — of water
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. pop — soda
  11. bank — for money
  12. prune — to trim
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bank — of a river
  15. rock — music
  16. pop — music
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bank — for money
  20. current — electric
  21. rock — a stone
  22. current — happening now
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. spell — a short 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