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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. bound — certain
  3. pit — a hole
  4. wound — an injury
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wound — an injury
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. spell — a short time
  9. swing — to play on
  10. bound — obliged
  11. swing — in golf
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spell — magic
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. spell — letters
  20. pit — in a race
  21. swing — music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. bound — tied together
  24. nail — for a hammer

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