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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: row · spell · rash · plane · mate · wake · hand · cell

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. wake — a trail
  4. mate — to breed
  5. spell — a short time
  6. rash — a series
  7. mate — a partner
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. row — a line
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. spell — magic
  15. spell — letters
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. plane — a tool
  18. rash — hasty
  19. hand — help
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. mate — a friend
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. plane — in geometry

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