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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bowl · clip · wound · spell · field · can

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — letters
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — farmland
  6. can — a tin
  7. spell — a short time
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. clip — for paper
  10. field — a subject
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. can — a tin
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. clip — a video
  17. can — to be able to
  18. wound — an injury

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