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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cap — a lid
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. swing — music
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. cap — of ice
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. cap — a hat
  11. swing — to play on
  12. wound — an injury
  13. root — of a word
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — in cards
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. game — a match
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. swing — in golf
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — the cause
  24. cabinet — ministers

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