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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wound — an injury
  3. spring — the season
  4. net — in sport
  5. march — the month
  6. wound — an injury
  7. row — a line
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. row — to paddle
  10. net — for catching
  11. march — the month
  12. pit — in a race
  13. spring — of water
  14. hand — in cards
  15. march — music
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. net — after costs
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. hand — help
  21. pit — a hole
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. spring — a coil
  24. ruler — for measuring

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