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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  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. stock — a soup base
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. row — a line
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. suit — in cards
  7. wound — an injury
  8. suit — to fit
  9. suit — clothes
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. row — to paddle
  12. drill — a practice
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. drill — the tool
  17. spell — letters
  18. snap — to click
  19. spell — magic
  20. spell — a short time
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — goods
  23. drill — army training
  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