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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 120 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: spell · game · mate · present · clip · rest · row · safe

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — letters
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — to cut
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. rest — what's left
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. mate — a friend
  10. mate — a partner
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a line
  14. spell — a short time
  15. mate — to breed
  16. present — a gift
  17. game — wild animals
  18. rest — what's left
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. present — the time now
  21. game — a match
  22. clip — for paper
  23. rest — a break
  24. present — there

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