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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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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. band — a ring
  3. charge — a price
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. swing — in golf
  6. scale — size or range
  7. swing — to play on
  8. band — a music group
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. charge — electricity
  11. ground — a position
  12. charge — in control
  13. ground — the earth
  14. sharp — clever
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. ground — crushed
  17. scale — in music
  18. swing — music
  19. fork — in a road
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. scale — for weighing

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