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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: wound · shower · tear · deal · saw · arm · wave · content

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  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. tear — from crying
  2. wound — an injury
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. shower — to wash
  8. content — happy
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. shower — rain
  11. saw — the tool
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. deal — to handle
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. tear — to rip
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. content — the amount
  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