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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. court — of law
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. mine — for digging
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. swing — in golf
  9. snap — to click
  10. roll — a list
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. lean — thin
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. wound — an injury
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. wound — an injury
  18. court — for sport
  19. lean — to bend
  20. can — a tin
  21. court — of a king
  22. swing — music
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. swing — to play on

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