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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. shower — to wash
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. wound — an injury
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. fine — all right
  10. kick — in football
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. mark — a trace
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. sharp — clever
  15. mark — a grade
  16. shower — rain
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. fine — high quality
  20. stand — to bear
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. mark — to pay attention

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