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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: deal · staff · craft · clip · rule · wind · wave · spell

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. clip — for paper
  3. deal — to handle
  4. craft — boats
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. staff — a stick
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. spell — letters
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. craft — a skill
  15. clip — to cut
  16. staff — employees
  17. clip — a video
  18. wind — moving air
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. wind — moving air
  21. rule — a law
  22. spell — magic
  23. rule — government
  24. staff — employees

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