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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 120 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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — of your body
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pop — soda
  8. swing — music
  9. bark — to shout
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mug — a face
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. pop — music
  15. mug — to rob
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. swing — to play on
  20. pop — to visit
  21. mug — a cup
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. chest — a box
  24. swing — in golf

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