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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: rash · cap · dip · wound · club · wind · mouse · march

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. dip — to sink
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. cap — of ice
  8. rash — a series
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. club — a group
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. club — for dancing
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cap — a hat
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. rash — hasty
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. club — for golf
  23. march — the month
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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