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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rule — government
  6. swing — in golf
  7. ball — a great time
  8. rule — a law
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. swing — to play on
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. band — a music group
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. plane — a tool
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. ball — a dance
  22. swing — music
  23. kick — in football
  24. rule — to rule out

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