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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. cold — not warm
  3. staff — employees
  4. present — the time now
  5. swing — to play on
  6. staff — a stick
  7. kid — child
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — in sport
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. cold — an illness
  16. present — a gift
  17. bear — the animal
  18. staff — employees
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. swing — in golf
  23. present — there
  24. mine — for digging

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