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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: file · wake · hand · current · snap · wound · rash · spell

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — hasty
  4. file — a tool
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. current — happening now
  7. file — a line of people
  8. spell — magic
  9. spell — letters
  10. hand — help
  11. current — electric
  12. wound — an injury
  13. spell — a short time
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. current — of water
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. snap — to click
  23. hand — in cards
  24. file — a document

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