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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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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: spring · game · stand · foot · clip · saw · spell · racket

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. foot — a measure
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. spring — the season
  7. spell — magic
  8. spring — a coil
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. spring — of water
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. clip — for paper
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — the tool
  17. clip — a video
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. stand — to bear
  21. spell — letters
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. game — a match
  24. clip — to cut

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