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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. hand — help
  3. game — a match
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bound — tied together
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. saw — the tool
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bound — obliged
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. saw — the tool
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. game — wild animals
  17. hand — in cards
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. bound — certain

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