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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wound — an injury
  3. craft — boats
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. swing — music
  6. wind — moving air
  7. swing — to play on
  8. hand — help
  9. wound — an injury
  10. swing — in golf
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. dip — to sink
  13. craft — a skill
  14. club — for dancing
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. club — a group
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — happy
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. club — for golf
  24. hand — in cards

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