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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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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: spell · club · lean · roll · date · bat · mark · deal

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. spell — a short time
  4. date — the fruit
  5. mark — a grade
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. lean — thin
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. mark — a trace
  11. roll — a cake
  12. deal — to handle
  13. spell — magic
  14. lean — to bend
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. spell — letters
  19. bat — the animal
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. club — a group
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. club — for dancing

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