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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 · roll · cue · wound · net · shower · rule · last

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. net — after costs
  5. cue — a hint
  6. last — finally
  7. rule — government
  8. rule — a law
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cue — a signal
  11. net — for catching
  12. roll — a list
  13. perch — the fish
  14. roll — a cake
  15. cue — for pool
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. shower — to wash
  18. wound — an injury
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — final
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. net — in sport
  24. shower — rain

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