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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 124 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. mug — a face
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. mug — to rob
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. current — electric
  7. lie — to recline
  8. swing — to play on
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. swing — music
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. current — of water
  14. rock — a stone
  15. swing — in golf
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. rock — music
  18. wound — an injury
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. current — happening now
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. mug — a cup

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