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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: spell · firm · staff · roll · bat · scale · snap · rash

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. staff — employees
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. rash — a series
  7. staff — a stick
  8. roll — a cake
  9. roll — a list
  10. spell — letters
  11. snap — to click
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. spell — a short time
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. spell — magic
  17. rash — hasty
  18. firm — steady
  19. scale — size or range
  20. firm — decided
  21. staff — employees
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. scale — in music

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