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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — an injury
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — hasty
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. pound — a weight
  12. bat — the animal
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. mine — for digging
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rash — a series
  18. mine — belonging to me

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