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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 120 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: hand · charge · spell · snap · squash · wake · patient · mark

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. squash — the sport
  3. wake — a trail
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. mark — a trace
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. spell — magic
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. hand — help
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. charge — electricity
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. charge — a price
  15. hand — in cards
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to click
  19. spell — a short time
  20. squash — to crush
  21. spell — letters
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. charge — in control
  24. mark — a grade

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