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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: spell · content · hand · snap · ball · mate · calf · wake

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. ball — a great time
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. hand — in cards
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. spell — magic
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. content — happy
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. mate — a friend
  12. snap — to click
  13. ball — a dance
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. content — the amount
  16. wake — a trail
  17. spell — a short time
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. mate — to breed
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. mate — a partner
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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