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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  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 — an injury
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bore — to drill
  4. spring — the season
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. spring — a coil
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. spring — of water
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. root — of a word
  18. bark — to shout
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. root — the cause
  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