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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 · last · sharp · prune · wound · stick · net · fan

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. spell — magic
  3. net — in sport
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. last — to go on
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. last — finally
  13. prune — to trim
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wound — an injury
  17. spell — a short time
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. sharp — clever
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — after costs
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. spell — letters
  24. wound — an injury

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