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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. swing — music
  3. field — farmland
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. swing — in golf
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. field — a subject
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. dip — to sink
  15. deal — to handle
  16. field — for sport
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. swing — to play on
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. mine — for digging
  23. fork — in a road
  24. deal — a big deal

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