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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. bark — to shout
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wind — moving air
  5. court — for sport
  6. swing — in golf
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. court — of a king
  9. wind — moving air
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. court — of law
  16. sharp — clever
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wound — an injury
  19. snap — to click
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — music
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. sharp — exactly

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