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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: racket · wake · clip · patient · spring · kick · rock · wound

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. spring — the season
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. wake — a trail
  5. spring — a coil
  6. rock — music
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. clip — a video
  13. rock — a stone
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. clip — for paper
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. wound — an injury
  21. clip — to cut
  22. kick — in football
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. spring — of water

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