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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to click
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. band — a ring
  6. row — to paddle
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bank — of a river
  9. spell — a short time
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. sharp — clever
  12. field — for sport
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. spell — letters
  16. bank — for money
  17. row — a line
  18. bank — for money
  19. band — a music group
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — a subject
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — lets stay

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