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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: clip · bulb · mine · wave · shower · hand · wound · squash

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wound — an injury
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. hand — help
  7. squash — the sport
  8. shower — rain
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. clip — a video
  11. squash — to crush
  12. hand — in cards
  13. wound — an injury
  14. shower — to wash
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. clip — to cut
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. mine — for digging
  24. wave — with your hand

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