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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: wound · wake · bass · deal · bore · bear · rush · content

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. rush — hurry
  5. deal — to handle
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. bass — the fish
  8. bear — the animal
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. content — happy
  12. content — the amount
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bore — to drill
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. bass — low music
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. wake — a trail
  24. deal — an agreement

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