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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 120 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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — in golf
  3. tear — from crying
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. tear — from crying
  6. drill — the tool
  7. swing — music
  8. drill — a practice
  9. spring — of water
  10. mug — to rob
  11. net — in sport
  12. foot — a measure
  13. mug — a cup
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. net — after costs
  16. ground — crushed
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — a coil
  19. ground — the earth
  20. drill — army training
  21. tear — to rip
  22. ground — a position
  23. mug — a face
  24. net — for catching

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