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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. march — the month
  3. mine — for digging
  4. content — happy
  5. rule — a law
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. rule — government
  8. content — the amount
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. march — the month
  11. swing — to play on
  12. bear — the animal
  13. kick — in football
  14. swing — in golf
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. bear — the animal
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. march — music
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. straw — a straw man

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