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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bass — the fish
  11. mine — for digging
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. suit — in cards
  17. bass — low music
  18. suit — clothes
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wake — a trail
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. suit — to fit
  24. pound — a weight

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