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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. ball — a great time
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. squash — to crush
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. wound — an injury
  8. ball — a dance
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. spell — magic
  12. rash — a series
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. rash — hasty
  15. stock — goods
  16. snap — to click
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. stock — shares
  19. spell — letters
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. perch — the fish
  22. spell — a short time
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. squash — the sport

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