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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. mark — a grade
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. present — a gift
  6. last — to go on
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. dip — to sink
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — rain
  11. mark — a trace
  12. last — finally
  13. last — final
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. saw — the tool
  17. present — the time now
  18. shower — to wash
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. wound — an injury
  23. saw — the tool
  24. present — there

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