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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 120 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: fine · snap · spell · lean · court · pit · patient · row

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. snap — to click
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — all right
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. spell — a short time
  7. pit — a hole
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. row — a line
  11. pit — in a race
  12. court — of a king
  13. lean — to bend
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. lean — thin
  16. row — to paddle
  17. spell — letters
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. court — of law
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. court — for sport

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