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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. swing — to play on
  3. file — a tool
  4. swing — in golf
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. swing — music
  7. spring — a coil
  8. charge — a price
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. file — a line of people
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. file — a document
  15. kid — child
  16. bear — the animal
  17. kid — to tease
  18. spring — the season
  19. charge — in control
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. wake — a trail
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. charge — electricity
  24. spring — of water

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