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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. mark — a grade
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. content — the amount
  9. cold — not warm
  10. content — happy
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. perch — the fish
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. mark — a trace
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wake — a trail
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. content — videos and posts
  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