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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: hide · pit · saw · rash · wound · spell · bound · plane

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — obliged
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. spell — magic
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. rash — hasty
  13. rash — a series
  14. spell — letters
  15. bound — tied together
  16. wound — an injury
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. plane — a tool
  19. pit — a hole
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. spell — a short time
  24. pit — in a race

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