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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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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: tear · pass · sharp · last · rush · wound · ground · racket

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. last — finally
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pass — a permit
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. ground — crushed
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. wound — an injury
  14. last — to go on
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rush — hurry
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. ground — the earth
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. ground — a position
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. last — final
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. sharp — clever

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