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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. pop — music
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. march — the month
  6. pop — soda
  7. shower — rain
  8. fine — high quality
  9. swing — music
  10. land — a country
  11. swing — to play on
  12. land — ground
  13. rule — a law
  14. rule — government
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. land — to come down
  18. swing — in golf
  19. fine — all right
  20. shower — to wash
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. march — music
  23. pop — to visit
  24. march — the month

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