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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. swing — to play on
  3. present — a gift
  4. saw — the tool
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. wound — an injury
  8. present — there
  9. present — the time now
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. tear — from crying
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. game — wild animals
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. wound — an injury
  16. swing — music
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. vault — a safe
  23. swing — in golf
  24. game — a kind of play

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