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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: snap · file · mine · wake · wound · squash · bulb · present

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. squash — to crush
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. bulb — for light
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bulb — for light
  9. present — a gift
  10. snap — to click
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. present — there
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. squash — the sport
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. present — the time now
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wound — an injury
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a line of people
  24. wake — a trail

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