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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bulb · snap · march · swing · coach · wound · bore · ground

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. ground — a position
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bulb — for light
  6. march — the month
  7. snap — to click
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. swing — in golf
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. march — the month
  12. wound — an injury
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wound — an injury
  16. march — music
  17. ground — crushed
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bore — to tire
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. bulb — for light
  22. ground — the earth
  23. swing — music
  24. bore — to drill

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