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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. swing — music
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. net — for catching
  8. kick — in football
  9. spell — letters
  10. land — ground
  11. swing — in golf
  12. land — to come down
  13. net — after costs
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. cold — an illness
  16. land — a country
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. swing — to play on
  20. spell — a short time
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. net — in sport
  24. cold — not warm

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