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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. ground — a position
  4. spring — of water
  5. swing — music
  6. spring — a coil
  7. swing — to play on
  8. cell — in biology
  9. ground — crushed
  10. spring — the season
  11. ground — the earth
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. cell — a phone
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. swing — in golf
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lean — thin
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. lean — to bend
  24. lean — to rest against

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