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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: spell · toast · ruler · wound · mate · rush · wake · tear

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rush — hurry
  3. spell — magic
  4. mate — a partner
  5. toast — bread
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. tear — from crying
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wake — a trail
  11. tear — from crying
  12. spell — letters
  13. tear — to rip
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wound — an injury
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. mate — a friend
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. mate — to breed
  24. spell — a short time

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