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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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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: cell · hand · suit · kid · wound · wake · perch · arm

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. suit — to fit
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. cell — in biology
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. perch — the fish
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. suit — in cards
  13. wake — a trail
  14. suit — clothes
  15. kid — to tease
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. kid — child
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. hand — help

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