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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — music
  3. file — a line of people
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a word
  7. last — final
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. rule — a law
  11. field — a subject
  12. last — finally
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. file — a tool
  15. deal — to handle
  16. chair — a leader
  17. field — farmland
  18. root — of a plant
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. field — for sport
  21. rule — government
  22. file — a document
  23. last — to go on
  24. swing — in golf

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