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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. spell — letters
  3. season — of the year
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. hand — in cards
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. spell — magic
  10. pass — a permit
  11. season — in sport
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. game — a match
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. game — wild animals
  17. march — the month
  18. hand — help
  19. march — music
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. march — the month
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. hand — part of the body

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