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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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. wound — an injury
  4. rest — what's left
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — to drop
  8. chair — a leader
  9. mine — for digging
  10. game — wild animals
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. game — a match
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. fall — the season
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. rest — a break
  23. pitch — completely
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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