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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 were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. shower — rain
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. rock — music
  9. mug — to rob
  10. spring — the season
  11. club — for dancing
  12. mug — a face
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. mug — a cup
  15. wake — a trail
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. club — for golf
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. shower — to wash
  20. row — a line
  21. row — to paddle
  22. spring — of water
  23. club — a group
  24. spring — a coil

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