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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.

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: mine · perch · spell · swing · dip · band · fine · snap

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. spell — letters
  5. dip — to sink
  6. perch — the fish
  7. spell — a short time
  8. snap — to click
  9. fine — all right
  10. swing — to play on
  11. band — a ring
  12. swing — in golf
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. spell — magic
  22. fine — high quality
  23. swing — music
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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