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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. can — to be able to
  3. file — a document
  4. can — a tin
  5. prune — to trim
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — in golf
  8. content — the amount
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. can — a tin
  11. file — a tool
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. race — humankind
  15. content — happy
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bat — the animal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. file — a line of people
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. race — the arms race
  22. race — a contest
  23. content — videos and posts
  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