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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. season — of the year
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. rash — hasty
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. swing — in golf
  11. capital — money
  12. kid — child
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pit — a hole
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. rash — a series
  18. season — in sport
  19. capital — a city
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. kid — to tease
  24. pit — in a race

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