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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: spring · snap · lie · branch · wind · spell · vault · last

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. spring — a coil
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. spell — magic
  5. snap — to click
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. last — finally
  10. spring — the season
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. last — to go on
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. vault — a safe
  16. spell — a short time
  17. last — final
  18. spring — of water
  19. branch — a division
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. lie — to recline
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. spell — letters

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