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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. The water is too ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. cold — not warm
  3. swing — in golf
  4. charge — in control
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. swing — to play on
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cold — an illness
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. sharp — clever
  15. charge — a price
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. swing — music
  21. wound — an injury
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. charge — electricity

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