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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 120 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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. wound — an injury
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. perch — the fish
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. bound — obliged
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bound — certain
  10. staff — employees
  11. ground — a position
  12. staff — a stick
  13. band — a ring
  14. wound — an injury
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — not warm
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. band — a music group
  20. staff — employees
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ground — crushed
  24. bound — tied together

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