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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. ball — a great time
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. band — a music group
  8. perch — the fish
  9. band — a ring
  10. foot — a measure
  11. ball — a dance
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. mine — for digging
  17. stand — to bear
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. band — a rubber band

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