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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. game — wild animals
  5. wound — an injury
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tube — a container
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tube — the underground
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. game — a match
  15. bank — for money
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. spell — a short time
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. bank — for money
  23. kick — in football
  24. bank — of a river

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