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

Word bank: mine · date · cue · deal · snap · fall · mate · spell

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. fall — to drop
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. fall — the season
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mine — for digging
  10. snap — to click
  11. deal — to handle
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. mate — to breed
  14. cue — a hint
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. spell — a short time
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. cue — for pool
  20. fall — to drop
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. cue — a signal
  23. date — the fruit
  24. mate — a friend

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