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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. present — there
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. ball — a dance
  6. fall — the season
  7. current — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. race — humankind
  10. wound — an injury
  11. present — the time now
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. current — electric
  14. ball — a great time
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. fall — to drop
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wake — a trail
  22. race — the arms race
  23. race — a contest
  24. wound — an injury

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