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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — an injury
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. spell — magic
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. cold — an illness
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. last — final
  14. spell — letters
  15. cold — not warm
  16. deal — to handle
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. spell — a short time

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