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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: club · spell · bore · fan · perch · clip · game · lean

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bore — to tire
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — a short time
  5. clip — a video
  6. club — for golf
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. bore — to drill
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. perch — the fish
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to bend
  14. clip — to cut
  15. game — a match
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. club — a group
  21. club — for dancing
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. game — wild animals
  24. clip — for paper

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