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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: track · pound · spell · game · present · wave · spring · row

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. spell — a short time
  4. present — a gift
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. track — a song
  7. spring — the season
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. spell — letters
  10. present — there
  11. row — to paddle
  12. present — the time now
  13. row — a line
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. track — a path
  16. game — a match
  17. track — to keep track
  18. spring — a coil
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pound — a weight
  21. spring — of water
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. game — wild animals

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