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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: rest · wind · suit · mouse · ball · last · content · wound

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. last — finally
  3. last — to go on
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. ball — a great time
  6. rest — what's left
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. suit — clothes
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. ball — a dance
  11. last — final
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wound — an injury
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. rest — a break
  16. suit — to fit
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. content — happy
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wind — moving air
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. suit — in cards
  23. wind — moving air
  24. content — the amount

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