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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: safe · bark · sharp · fan · row · wind · wound · cell

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. cell — a phone
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. sharp — clever
  9. row — to paddle
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. row — a line
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bark — to shout
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. cell — in biology
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. wound — an injury
  24. sharp — with an edge

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