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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 · pit · fan · wound · file · bound · perch · bowl

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — what's left
  5. pit — a hole
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bound — obliged
  9. pit — in a race
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. rest — a break
  12. file — a line of people
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. file — a document
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bound — certain
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. file — a tool
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. wound — an injury

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