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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bear — the animal
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to click
  10. wound — an injury
  11. kick — in football
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. hand — in cards
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. pit — in a race
  16. bear — the animal
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pit — a hole
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. hand — help

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