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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: ground · rush · jam · stick · cold · wound · coach · rash

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rash — hasty
  5. ground — a position
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. cold — not warm
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. cold — an illness
  11. wound — an injury
  12. ground — crushed
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. rush — hurry
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. ground — the earth
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. rash — a series

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