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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pit · game · wound · spell · can · tear · club · date

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wound — an injury
  4. can — to be able to
  5. club — for golf
  6. can — a tin
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. can — a tin
  10. spell — letters
  11. club — for dancing
  12. club — a group
  13. date — the fruit
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wound — an injury
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. pit — a hole
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pit — in a race
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. tear — to rip
  23. spell — magic
  24. tear — from crying

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