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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. shower — to wash
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. roll — a cake
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. roll — a list
  8. prune — to trim
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. chair — a leader
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wound — an injury
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. wind — moving air
  20. prune — to trim
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. wound — an injury
  24. shower — rain

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