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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: wound · lie · drill · ground · pitcher · chair · content · fine

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. lie — to recline
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. ground — a position
  12. drill — the tool
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. ground — the earth
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. fine — high quality
  19. drill — army training
  20. content — the amount
  21. fine — all right
  22. drill — a practice
  23. content — happy
  24. ground — crushed

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