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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. court — of law
  4. bore — to tire
  5. present — there
  6. cap — of ice
  7. wound — an injury
  8. chip — to eat
  9. court — for sport
  10. cap — a lid
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. court — of a king
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. present — the time now
  15. chip — for betting
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. bore — to drill
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. present — a gift
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. cap — a hat
  24. sharp — clever

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