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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: fall · fork · game · hide · pop · kick · cue · spell

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fall — to drop
  4. cue — a hint
  5. pop — soda
  6. fork — in a road
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. game — a match
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. cue — for pool
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. pop — music
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. cue — a signal
  18. spell — letters
  19. pop — to visit
  20. kick — in football
  21. spell — a short time
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — wild animals
  24. kick — with a leg

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