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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 120 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: swing · row · wound · chip · ground · fall · snap · bay

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. swing — to play on
  3. swing — music
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. fall — to drop
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. ground — the earth
  10. fall — to drop
  11. row — a line
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. swing — in golf
  14. fall — the season
  15. chip — for betting
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. snap — to click
  19. ground — crushed
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. row — to paddle
  24. ground — a position

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