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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. prune — to trim
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. wound — an injury
  5. current — of water
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bound — certain
  10. wound — an injury
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bound — obliged
  13. prune — to trim
  14. fall — to drop
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. dip — to sink
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. swing — music
  21. swing — to play on
  22. current — happening now
  23. current — electric
  24. chair — a leader

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