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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: cell · date · wound · pass · staff · spell · ground · straw

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. ground — a position
  6. spell — letters
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. ground — crushed
  9. spell — magic
  10. staff — a stick
  11. date — the fruit
  12. spell — a short time
  13. pass — a permit
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — a phone
  19. staff — employees
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. ground — the earth
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. wound — an injury
  24. staff — employees

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