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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. swing — music
  3. pitch — completely
  4. lean — thin
  5. pop — music
  6. lean — to bend
  7. pop — to visit
  8. staff — employees
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. ground — a position
  11. pop — soda
  12. ground — the earth
  13. swing — to play on
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. staff — a stick
  17. swing — in golf
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. ground — crushed

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