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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. cap — a lid
  4. court — of a king
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. rash — hasty
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. rash — a series
  11. cap — a hat
  12. snap — to click
  13. rock — music
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. cap — of ice
  17. pound — a weight
  18. court — for sport
  19. pass — a permit
  20. rock — a stone
  21. court — of law
  22. wound — an injury
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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