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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. ball — a dance
  3. swing — to play on
  4. ball — a great time
  5. pop — music
  6. bulb — for light
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. fall — to drop
  9. field — farmland
  10. board — a committee
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mine — for digging
  13. board — to get on
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. pop — soda
  16. field — for sport
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. swing — in golf
  19. pop — to visit
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. field — a subject
  24. bulb — for light

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