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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bound — obliged
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. row — a line
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. pop — music
  8. snap — to click
  9. pop — soda
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wound — an injury
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a music group
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. deal — to handle
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. pop — to visit
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. bound — certain
  24. bulb — for light

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