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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
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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: deal · roll · present · court · mate · march · spell · lash

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. roll — a cake
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mate — a partner
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. present — a gift
  9. court — of law
  10. mate — a friend
  11. court — of a king
  12. march — the month
  13. present — the time now
  14. deal — to handle
  15. spell — magic
  16. roll — a list
  17. present — there
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. court — for sport
  21. march — the month
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — letters
  24. deal — a big deal

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