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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. key — for a lock
  7. perch — the fish
  8. season — of the year
  9. spell — letters
  10. rash — hasty
  11. game — a match
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. last — final
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. key — the most important part
  17. rash — a series
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spell — a short time
  20. last — finally
  21. last — to go on
  22. key — in music
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. season — in 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