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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 120 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. wound — an injury
  3. season — of the year
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — there
  9. wax — to grow
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. present — a gift
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rush — hurry
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. wound — an injury
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. season — in sport
  19. wind — moving air
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hand — help
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wax — in the ear

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