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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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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: spring · tear · rest · cell · spell · wind · roll · plane

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spell — a short time
  4. wind — moving air
  5. spring — of water
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. spring — the season
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. roll — a cake
  12. rest — what's left
  13. spell — letters
  14. rest — what's left
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. spell — magic
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. wind — moving air
  22. roll — a list
  23. rest — a break
  24. wind — to turn a key

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