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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: lean · arm · fan · hand · spell · ground · snap · content

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. ground — crushed
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. spell — magic
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. snap — to click
  9. content — the amount
  10. ground — a position
  11. spell — a short time
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — thin
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. content — happy
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. spell — letters
  23. ground — the earth
  24. arm — part of the body

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