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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bear — the animal
  4. wound — an injury
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. cell — a phone
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. cell — in biology
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. content — the amount
  17. swing — music
  18. content — happy
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. swing — in golf
  21. rash — hasty
  22. swing — to play on
  23. rash — a series
  24. bear — the animal

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