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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. march — the month
  4. cold — an illness
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. bass — the fish
  9. cold — not warm
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. bound — certain
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. wound — an injury
  17. firm — steady
  18. firm — a company
  19. chair — a leader
  20. firm — decided
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bass — low music
  23. bound — obliged
  24. cold — the Cold War

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