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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: snap · chip · land · mate · rock · calf · spell · last

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. land — to come down
  3. last — final
  4. mate — a friend
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. last — to go on
  7. spell — letters
  8. chip — for betting
  9. spell — magic
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. land — a country
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. mate — to breed
  14. mate — a partner
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. last — finally
  18. rock — a stone
  19. land — ground
  20. spell — a short time
  21. chip — to eat
  22. rock — music
  23. snap — to click
  24. calf — a young animal

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