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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. spring — a coil
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — a short time
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. spring — the season
  9. land — a country
  10. rest — a break
  11. rest — what's left
  12. deal — to handle
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. bore — to drill
  15. snap — to click
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. land — ground
  20. dip — to sink
  21. rest — what's left
  22. land — to come down
  23. bore — to tire
  24. spring — of water

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