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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — music
  4. bore — to drill
  5. field — a subject
  6. wound — an injury
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bore — to tire
  9. swing — to play on
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a partner
  12. lean — thin
  13. mate — a friend
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. hand — help
  16. branch — a division
  17. field — farmland
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. field — for sport
  20. lean — to bend
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. wound — an injury
  24. branch — of a tree

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