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

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. field — a subject
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. swing — to play on
  6. current — of water
  7. field — farmland
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. clip — a video
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. clip — to cut
  13. swing — music
  14. charge — a price
  15. pound — a weight
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. field — for sport
  19. swing — in golf
  20. current — electric
  21. current — happening now
  22. charge — electricity
  23. clip — for paper
  24. charge — in control

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