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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: shower · mouse · last · mine · present · leaves · ball · wound

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. present — the time now
  5. wound — an injury
  6. ball — a dance
  7. last — final
  8. wound — an injury
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — to wash
  11. last — finally
  12. mine — for digging
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. shower — rain
  15. ball — a great time
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. last — to go on
  23. present — there
  24. present — a gift

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