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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. shower — to wash
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. game — a match
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. stem — to come from
  13. band — a ring
  14. game — wild animals
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. band — a music group
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. saw — the tool
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. wound — an injury
  24. perch — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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