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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. rash — hasty
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. bound — obliged
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. bound — certain
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. swing — music
  10. bound — tied together
  11. rash — a series
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — to trim
  14. swing — in golf
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — magic
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. spell — a short time
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. swing — to play on
  24. wake — before a funeral

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