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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. file — a document
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a tool
  10. branch — a division
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. snap — to click
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. swing — to play on
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. present — a gift
  20. present — there
  21. sharp — clever
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. swing — in golf
  24. present — the time now

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