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

Word bank: present · jam · object · wound · bowl · stick · cell · cold

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. present — the time now
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. object — an aim
  10. present — a gift
  11. wound — an injury
  12. object — to protest
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. present — there
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. cell — a phone
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. object — a thing

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