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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
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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 · court · wake · bay · fall · land · date · cap

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. land — ground
  4. court — of law
  5. cap — of ice
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — a short time
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. land — to come down
  14. cap — a lid
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. land — a country
  19. cap — a hat
  20. wake — a trail
  21. fall — the season
  22. date — the fruit
  23. fall — to drop
  24. spell — letters

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