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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. cold — not warm
  3. fine — high quality
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fine — all right
  11. bark — to shout
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. cold — an illness
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. board — to get on
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. mine — for digging
  20. board — a committee
  21. wound — an injury
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. temple — side of the head

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