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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · cue · band · wound · game · perch · object · face

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. object — a thing
  3. band — a ring
  4. wound — an injury
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cue — for pool
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. object — to protest
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. cue — a hint
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cue — a signal
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. face — part of the head
  15. perch — the fish
  16. game — a match
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — rain
  19. object — an aim
  20. face — to point toward
  21. face — to confront
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. band — a music group
  24. game — wild animals

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