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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. firm — decided
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bear — the animal
  5. firm — a company
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rush — hurry
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. bear — the animal
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. wound — an injury
  13. firm — steady
  14. present — a gift
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. cold — not warm
  18. present — the time now
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. fork — in a road
  23. present — there
  24. fork — to eat with

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