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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 116 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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. spell — a short time
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. bulb — for light
  5. field — for sport
  6. tear — from crying
  7. spell — letters
  8. tear — from crying
  9. spell — magic
  10. swing — to play on
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. bulb — for light
  13. field — a subject
  14. mark — a trace
  15. shower — rain
  16. field — farmland
  17. tear — to rip
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mark — a grade
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. swing — music
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. shower — to wash

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