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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. pound — a weight
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. board — to get on
  5. cold — an illness
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. swing — in golf
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. board — a committee
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. perch — the fish
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. prune — to trim
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. swing — music
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. perch — for a bird

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