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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. spring — the season
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. spell — a short time
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — final
  15. wound — an injury
  16. saw — the tool
  17. spell — letters
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. last — finally
  20. spring — a coil
  21. wake — a trail
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. spell — magic
  24. spring — of water

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