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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: wound · rash · suit · cold · game · wind · can · nail

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. rash — hasty
  5. suit — in cards
  6. suit — clothes
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. cold — an illness
  9. rash — a series
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. wind — moving air
  13. can — a tin
  14. game — wild animals
  15. cold — not warm
  16. wound — an injury
  17. suit — to fit
  18. can — a tin
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. can — to be able to
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wound — an injury
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — on a finger

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