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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: perch · sharp · band · wound · saw · mine · lie · tube

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. wound — an injury
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — the fish
  7. band — a music group
  8. wound — an injury
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — for digging
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. lie — to recline
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. band — a ring
  22. sharp — clever
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. saw — the tool

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