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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: cap · arm · kid · present · mate · lean · spell · band

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. mate — a partner
  3. cap — a hat
  4. present — a gift
  5. band — a ring
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lean — thin
  8. present — the time now
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. mate — a friend
  11. present — there
  12. band — a music group
  13. kid — to tease
  14. spell — magic
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. kid — child
  17. cap — a lid
  18. mate — to breed
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. cap — of ice
  22. spell — a short time
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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