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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — letters
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. mate — a friend
  5. club — for dancing
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. club — a group
  8. club — for golf
  9. mate — a partner
  10. staff — employees
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. spell — a short time
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. fall — to drop
  17. kick — in football
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. staff — a stick
  21. fall — the season
  22. staff — employees
  23. mate — to breed
  24. fall — to drop

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