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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: rash · spell · wake · game · wind · bark · bass · coach

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. rash — hasty
  4. spell — magic
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. wind — moving air
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. spell — letters
  18. rash — a series
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bass — low music
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bark — to shout
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. game — a match

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