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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 120 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: wake · mug · spell · hide · wound · bound · mouse · lash

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bound — tied together
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. spell — magic
  7. bound — certain
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. spell — a short time
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. bound — obliged
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. mug — a cup
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. spell — letters
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mug — a face

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