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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. ground — the earth
  5. mark — a grade
  6. mark — a trace
  7. last — finally
  8. mate — a partner
  9. last — final
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. ground — a position
  13. swing — music
  14. last — to go on
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — the animal
  17. mate — to breed
  18. ground — crushed

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