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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.

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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. charge — electricity
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rash — a series
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bulb — for light
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. charge — in control
  11. wound — an injury
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bulb — for light
  14. mate — to breed
  15. rash — hasty
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. charge — a price
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. mate — a partner
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. rash — on the skin

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