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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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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. cold — an illness
  3. lie — to recline
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. rash — a series
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rush — hurry
  8. tube — a container
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. cold — not warm
  17. rash — hasty
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. tube — the underground
  24. wake — a trail

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