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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: swing · cold · wake · wound · rest · shower · key · rush

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cold — not warm
  3. wound — an injury
  4. key — in music
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — a trail
  7. rest — what's left
  8. key — for a lock
  9. swing — to play on
  10. key — the most important part
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. shower — to wash
  13. swing — in golf
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. rest — a break
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. swing — music
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wound — an injury
  21. shower — rain
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. rush — hurry

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