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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bass — low music
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. capital — money
  11. cold — not warm
  12. swing — music
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. present — a gift
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. staff — employees
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. present — there
  21. cold — an illness
  22. capital — a city
  23. present — the time now
  24. capital — a big letter

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