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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — a short time
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. club — for golf
  7. shower — rain
  8. degree — an amount
  9. wind — moving air
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. degree — from a university
  13. shower — to wash
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. wind — moving air
  16. club — a group
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. spell — letters
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. plane — a tool
  21. degree — temperature
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. club — for dancing
  24. racket — for tennis

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