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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 120 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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — ground
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. spell — a short time
  9. drill — army training
  10. rest — a break
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. season — in sport
  14. cell — in biology
  15. season — of the year
  16. drill — the tool
  17. rest — what's left
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. rush — hurry
  20. land — a country
  21. cell — a phone
  22. rest — what's left
  23. drill — a practice
  24. spell — letters

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