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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. spell — a short time
  3. wound — an injury
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. pop — music
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. spell — magic
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. spell — letters
  16. pop — to visit
  17. hand — help
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mark — a trace
  22. pop — soda
  23. hand — in cards
  24. hand — part of the body

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