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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. rash — hasty
  4. content — happy
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. spell — magic
  7. spell — letters
  8. content — the amount
  9. key — the most important part
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. key — for a lock
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. firm — a company
  14. game — wild animals
  15. firm — steady
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. game — a match
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rash — a series
  21. key — in music
  22. spell — a short time
  23. firm — decided
  24. patient — a sick person

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