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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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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  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. present — there
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. swing — to play on
  4. bark — to shout
  5. lean — to bend
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. present — a gift
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. rush — hurry
  11. saw — the tool
  12. lean — thin
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. saw — the tool
  15. swing — music
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. present — the time now
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rush — a thrill
  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