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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: cell · tube · cabinet · pop · wind · cap · spell · wake

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  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. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cell — in biology
  4. spell — magic
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cell — a phone
  9. pop — music
  10. cap — a lid
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — to visit
  13. spell — letters
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. tube — a container
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wind — moving air
  19. cap — a hat
  20. wake — a trail
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. tube — the underground
  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