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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. wound — an injury
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. mine — for digging
  5. fork — in a road
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. squash — the sport
  10. degree — from a university
  11. vault — a safe
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. degree — temperature
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. squash — to crush
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. degree — an amount
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. wound — an injury
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. swing — in golf
  24. squash — the vegetable

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