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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. present — the time now
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wound — an injury
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. sharp — clever
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. tear — from crying
  10. chair — a leader
  11. wound — an injury
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. present — there
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. tear — to rip
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. present — a gift
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. squash — the sport

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