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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: straw · suit · spell · rule · leaves · cold · charge · game

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. charge — electricity
  3. spell — magic
  4. suit — clothes
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. spell — a short time
  9. suit — in cards
  10. rule — government
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. game — a match
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. charge — in control
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. cold — an illness
  17. rule — a law
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. suit — to fit
  20. charge — a price
  21. cold — not warm
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. spell — letters

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