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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: wave · land · hand · leaves · ball · spell · jam · bass

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. spell — letters
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. land — ground
  5. spell — a short time
  6. land — a country
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. bass — the fish
  11. ball — a dance
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. land — to come down
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. bass — low music
  18. hand — in cards
  19. spell — magic
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. ball — a great time
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. ball — a round shape

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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