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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: fall · spell · bat · pound · jam · bound · date · game

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bound — certain
  6. game — a match
  7. bat — the animal
  8. fall — to drop
  9. date — the fruit
  10. pound — a weight
  11. bound — tied together
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. fall — to drop
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. spell — letters
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. spell — a short time
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. game — wild animals
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. fall — the season
  24. pound — to hit hard

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