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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. swing — to play on
  3. field — farmland
  4. chip — for betting
  5. mug — to rob
  6. bore — to drill
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. swing — in golf
  11. chip — to eat
  12. field — for sport
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. swing — music
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. mug — a cup
  18. field — a subject
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a ring
  21. bore — to tire
  22. mug — a face
  23. band — a music group
  24. straw — a straw man

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