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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: club · straw · rush · perch · wake · wound · can · game

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. wound — an injury
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. wake — a trail
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. club — for dancing
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. can — a tin
  11. game — wild animals
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. rush — hurry
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. game — a match
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. can — to be able to
  18. perch — the fish
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. club — a group
  21. can — a tin
  22. club — for golf
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rush — to hurry

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