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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 · wake · file · ruler · kid · fan · calf · rash

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. file — a document
  9. kid — to tease
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. file — a line of people
  13. rash — a series
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. file — a tool
  17. rash — hasty
  18. wake — a trail
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. kid — child

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