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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: band · wake · cell · deal · shower · wound · face · rock

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. rock — music
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. rock — a stone
  9. wake — a trail
  10. face — part of the head
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a ring
  13. shower — rain
  14. cell — in biology
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. wound — an injury
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. face — to confront
  20. band — a music group
  21. face — to point toward
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — a big deal

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