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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  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 — music
  2. last — to go on
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. stem — to come from
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cell — in biology
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. last — finally
  14. rash — hasty
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. swing — to play on
  20. rash — a series
  21. last — final
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. lie — to recline
  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