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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: mine · roll · land · wound · content · perch · mate · race

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. race — the arms race
  3. roll — a list
  4. land — to come down
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. perch — the fish
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. race — a contest
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. content — happy
  16. mate — to breed
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. content — the amount
  19. race — humankind
  20. mate — a friend
  21. roll — a cake
  22. land — a country
  23. land — ground
  24. mine — for digging

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