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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: ruler · bat · last · spell · fall · snap · ball · scale

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. last — to go on
  3. scale — in music
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bat — the animal
  6. snap — to click
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. spell — magic
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. fall — to drop
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. last — final
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a dance
  16. scale — size or range
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. spell — a short time
  19. last — finally
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. fall — the season
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. spell — letters

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