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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. mate — a partner
  3. wound — an injury
  4. craft — a skill
  5. mate — a friend
  6. ground — the earth
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. present — there
  9. craft — boats
  10. swing — in golf
  11. clip — for paper
  12. swing — to play on
  13. clip — a video
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. swing — music
  16. mate — to breed
  17. clip — to cut
  18. present — a gift
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. ground — a position
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. present — the time now
  24. ground — crushed

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