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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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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: jam · wound · band · wake · cell · perch · suit · tear

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. suit — clothes
  3. cell — a phone
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. tear — to rip
  11. perch — the fish
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. cell — in biology
  14. wake — a trail
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. band — a ring
  18. suit — to fit
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. band — a music group
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. suit — in cards
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. perch — for a bird

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