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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. spell — a short time
  3. spell — magic
  4. ground — a position
  5. drill — the tool
  6. drill — a practice
  7. squash — the sport
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — crushed
  11. key — the most important part
  12. drill — army training
  13. bank — of a river
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. key — in music
  16. key — for a lock
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bank — for money
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — to cut
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bank — for money
  24. clip — for paper

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