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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: snap · club · sharp · wound · ground · cell · root · march

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. cell — in biology
  5. ground — crushed
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. root — the cause
  8. club — for golf
  9. snap — to click
  10. ground — a position
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. march — music
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. club — a group
  17. march — the month
  18. club — for dancing
  19. ground — the earth
  20. root — of a word
  21. march — the month
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. root — of a plant
  24. cell — a phone

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