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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 116 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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. band — a ring
  4. snap — to click
  5. tube — the underground
  6. march — the month
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. wake — a trail
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. tube — a container
  11. mine — for digging
  12. march — the month
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. band — a music group
  16. firm — steady
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wound — an injury
  19. march — music
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. firm — a company
  22. wound — an injury
  23. firm — decided
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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