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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. sharp — clever
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. pass — a permit
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tear — from crying
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. tear — to rip
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. tear — from crying
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. mine — for digging
  24. chair — a professorship

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