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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: spell · club · toast · spring · bat · ball · hand · face

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  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. hand — part of the body
  2. club — a group
  3. ball — a dance
  4. toast — bread
  5. hand — in cards
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. face — part of the head
  8. spell — letters
  9. spring — of water
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. hand — help
  14. spring — the season
  15. face — to confront
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spell — a short time
  18. face — to point toward
  19. club — for golf
  20. bat — the animal
  21. ball — a great time
  22. spell — magic
  23. bat — in an idiom
  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