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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: date · rest · cabinet · temple · straw · snap · pound · spell

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. spell — magic
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. rest — what's left
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. spell — letters
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. snap — to click
  18. rest — a break
  19. date — the fruit
  20. pound — a weight
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. rest — what's left
  23. spell — a short time
  24. temple — a place of worship

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