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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. swing — to play on
  3. lie — to recline
  4. rule — government
  5. track — a path
  6. present — there
  7. swing — in golf
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. ground — crushed
  11. scale — in music
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. ground — the earth
  14. track — a song
  15. track — to keep track
  16. scale — size or range
  17. hand — help
  18. hand — in cards
  19. swing — music
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. ground — a position
  23. present — the time now
  24. rule — a law

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