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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. swing — in golf
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mate — a friend
  6. swing — to play on
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. cold — an illness
  9. prune — to trim
  10. race — humankind
  11. mate — a partner
  12. cold — not warm
  13. race — the arms race
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cap — a lid
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. cap — of ice
  21. race — a contest
  22. cap — a hat
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. prune — to trim

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