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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: spell · date · cold · court · saw · bass · bound · bank

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bound — certain
  4. spell — a short time
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. cold — not warm
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bass — low music
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — for money
  13. spell — letters
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — the fruit
  16. court — of a king
  17. bass — the fish
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. court — for sport
  20. cold — an illness
  21. court — of law
  22. saw — the tool
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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