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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: cold · spell · swing · mouse · land · rest · mark · face

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — a break
  3. spell — a short time
  4. face — to confront
  5. mark — a trace
  6. swing — to play on
  7. rest — what's left
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. face — part of the head
  11. land — to come down
  12. swing — music
  13. land — a country
  14. spell — magic
  15. mark — a grade
  16. land — ground
  17. swing — in golf
  18. cold — not warm
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. face — to point toward
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. spell — letters
  24. cold — an illness

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