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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: clip · spell · wound · ground · suit · snap · coach · dip

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. suit — in cards
  3. ground — a position
  4. spell — magic
  5. clip — for paper
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. snap — to click
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. clip — a video
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. suit — clothes
  12. spell — letters
  13. suit — to fit
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. dip — to sink
  17. wound — an injury
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. clip — to cut
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. wound — an injury
  22. spell — a short time
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ground — crushed

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