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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: wake · fine · net · rock · face · clip · wound · chest

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. face — to point toward
  3. rock — a stone
  4. wake — a trail
  5. rock — music
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wound — an injury
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. clip — for paper
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. fine — high quality
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. clip — a video
  16. net — after costs
  17. chest — a box
  18. net — in sport
  19. clip — to cut
  20. net — for catching
  21. fine — all right
  22. face — part of the head
  23. chest — of your body
  24. face — to confront

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