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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. wound — an injury
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. game — wild animals
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. rock — a stone
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. ball — a great time
  12. perch — the fish
  13. ball — a dance
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. wake — a trail
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. game — a match
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. rock — music

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