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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
468
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 · swing · chair · craft · wound · march · lash · content

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. swing — to play on
  3. spell — a short time
  4. chair — a leader
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. swing — in golf
  8. craft — a skill
  9. swing — music
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. spell — letters
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. content — happy
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. content — the amount
  18. march — music
  19. craft — boats
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. march — the month
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. march — the month
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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