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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. suit — in cards
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. key — in music
  10. key — the most important part
  11. game — wild animals
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. wake — a trail
  15. suit — clothes
  16. march — music
  17. key — for a lock
  18. march — the month
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. suit — to fit
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to click
  23. march — the month
  24. game — a match

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