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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: pit · game · row · spell · wake · suit · arm · wind

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. pit — a hole
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. spell — a short time
  9. suit — clothes
  10. pit — in a race
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. row — a line
  14. row — to paddle
  15. spell — magic
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — a match
  19. suit — in cards
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — a trail
  23. suit — to fit
  24. game — wild animals

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