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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: court · hand · rush · wake · fan · rest · mouse · wound

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. rest — what's left
  6. hand — help
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. rest — a break
  10. rush — hurry
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. court — for sport
  13. hand — in cards
  14. court — of a king
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — a trail
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. wound — an injury
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. court — of law
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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