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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: snap · tube · land · arm · bound · spell · court · chair

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. tube — the underground
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. court — of law
  7. court — of a king
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to click
  10. land — ground
  11. spell — a short time
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. chair — a leader
  14. spell — letters
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. land — a country
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — certain
  20. tube — a container
  21. court — for sport
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bound — obliged
  24. land — to come down

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