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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. saw — the tool
  7. last — final
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. deal — to handle
  12. pop — soda
  13. wound — an injury
  14. last — finally
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. pop — to visit
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. pop — music
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. saw — the tool
  22. wake — a trail
  23. branch — a division
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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