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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. swing — music
  4. fine — all right
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. swing — to play on
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. cold — an illness
  10. swing — in golf
  11. rock — a stone
  12. rock — music
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. foot — a measure
  19. bark — to shout
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bulb — for light
  23. ground — a position
  24. cold — not warm

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