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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 124 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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bulb — for light
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. hand — in cards
  8. cell — a phone
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. snap — to click
  16. wind — moving air
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. spell — magic
  19. hand — help
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bulb — for light
  22. spell — a short time
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. cell — in biology

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