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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 116 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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. spell — a short time
  3. row — a line
  4. spell — magic
  5. wound — an injury
  6. club — for dancing
  7. current — electric
  8. hand — help
  9. club — a group
  10. current — of water
  11. rest — what's left
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. row — to paddle
  15. current — happening now
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. wound — an injury
  18. club — for golf
  19. spell — letters
  20. hand — in cards
  21. rest — what's left
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. mouse — the animal

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