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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 116 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: wound · spell · fan · bowl · cold · wake · mate · trunk

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. cold — not warm
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. mate — to breed
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wound — an injury
  15. spell — magic
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. mate — a friend
  18. wake — a trail
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. spell — a short time
  21. cold — an illness
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mate — a partner
  24. spell — letters

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