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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. suit — in cards
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. suit — to fit
  8. wound — an injury
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. spell — letters
  12. rush — hurry
  13. squash — to crush
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bass — low music
  16. spell — a short time
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. perch — the fish
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wake — a trail
  21. bass — the fish
  22. squash — the sport
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. spell — magic

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