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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: wound · rule · spell · club · season · bound · plane · nail

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. season — in sport
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bound — certain
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. wound — an injury
  10. club — a group
  11. plane — a tool
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. club — for dancing
  14. wound — an injury
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. club — for golf
  18. rule — a law
  19. season — of the year
  20. bound — obliged
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. spell — a short time
  23. rule — government
  24. spell — magic

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