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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 · wound · cell · sharp · pit · last · can · bay

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. last — finally
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. cell — in biology
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. last — final
  8. last — to go on
  9. can — to be able to
  10. can — a tin
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. wound — an injury
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. swing — music
  15. can — a tin
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. sharp — clever
  18. swing — in golf
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a hole
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. swing — to play on

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