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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bound — certain
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — hurry
  5. field — a subject
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bound — tied together
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — farmland
  11. cue — a signal
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. bound — obliged
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. cue — a hint
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. stem — to come from
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. wound — an injury
  23. cue — for pool
  24. deal — to handle

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