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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. swing — to play on
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — in biology
  9. swing — music
  10. swing — in golf
  11. wound — an injury
  12. root — of a plant
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. root — of a word
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. cell — a phone
  18. root — the cause
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — clever
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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