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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: bay · bulb · spell · saw · hand · trunk · hide · wound

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bulb — for light
  3. spell — magic
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. wound — an injury
  8. spell — letters
  9. saw — the tool
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wound — an injury
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. hand — help
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. spell — a short time
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. saw — the tool

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