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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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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: dip · date · bowl · spell · wake · snap · cold · deal

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. deal — to handle
  4. date — the fruit
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — a trail
  10. snap — to click
  11. spell — magic
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. cold — not warm
  19. spell — letters
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. dip — to sink
  24. spell — a short time

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