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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. ground — crushed
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. ground — the earth
  5. swing — in golf
  6. ground — a position
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. swing — to play on
  10. kick — in football
  11. row — a line
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — to trim
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in biology
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. row — to paddle
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — a trail
  24. swing — music

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