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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. spring — a coil
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. fall — to drop
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fall — to drop
  8. land — a country
  9. pound — a weight
  10. face — to point toward
  11. fall — the season
  12. face — part of the head
  13. spring — the season
  14. perch — the fish
  15. spring — of water
  16. face — to confront
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. land — ground
  24. land — to come down

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