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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: trunk · row · wind · chip · spell · ball · foot · saw

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. spell — magic
  3. ball — a great time
  4. saw — the tool
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. foot — a measure
  10. saw — the tool
  11. row — a line
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. spell — a short time
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. wind — moving air
  18. ball — a dance
  19. chip — for betting
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. row — to paddle
  23. wind — moving air
  24. chip — to eat

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